Her nickname is "Tanj", and she's certainly living up to it. For her, it seems, "There Ain't No Justice." As a young engineer on a tramp space freighter, this Cheetah-morph found herself the victim of a scam, sold into slavery, and trained as a sex-slave. Sold to pirates, she finds herself as a pawn in a much larger struggle. This story contains bondage, non-consensual sex, and hopefully some humor, adventure and intrigue. Adults only, please!

Tanj's Tales: Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude
By Kittiara and Ann'katar
Stardate 2398.50

Tanj sighed and once again riffled through the stack of forms she carried. "Flight plan, Mission outline, Fuel Requisition... Who would ever have thought a simple supply run could be so complicated?" Ben, the head of operations just chuckled, taking the stack of hardcopies from the cheetah-fem's paws. "Procedures have to be followed, Tanj, or we'll have chaos. The organization's just grown too large for folks to just head off with a wave and a "See you later!" Besides, you DO want to have all the passwords correct when you come back, don't you? To have the Ops crew expecting you? It'd save you that trouble Erikson went through last week." Tanj grinned as she thought of the hapless Raider ship captain that had misplaced his passwords, and when he had shown up unexpectedly early, had almost been blown to pieces when he arrived at the pirate's base. As Ben signed off on Tanj's forms, the wolf sighed; "And when you're at Smiley's, I'd appreciate it..." Tanj grinned and finished his sentence with him as a chorus "if you could find me some Brie..." Tanj giggled and kissed the wolf on the nose as she collected her forms; "Yes, Ben, I'll remember; we'll do our best!"

As she walked through the asteroid station, towards the docking bay, Tanj found it difficult to hold her excitement in check. This was the FIRST mission they were turning her loose on by herself. Sure, she'd flown the Lion and a few other of the Brethren's command group to that meeting with the Elysium rebels over at Danforth. That had gone well, not a single problem, but she hadn't been in charge. Nothing more than a glorified bus driver. She'd taken some of the folks from accounting, and a cargo hold full of Loot to Port Royale to meet the "brokers" (i.e. "fences"), but again, Dave from accounting had been in charge of that trip. THIS trip was all hers; SHE was in charge! Even if it was a simple "milk-run" to go pick up some repair parts...

Tanj grinned to herself as she walked through the docking bay towards her ship; she couldn't help giggling over just HOW the lion had told her she was to make the trip. It'd been late one night, and she'd returned from her tasks in the intelligence office, to find him still at work at his desk in his quarters. Feeling a bit of a tease, she'd crawled under his desk, to nuzzle his crotch as he tried to work. It wasn't long before his pants were around his ankles and his hardening cock in her mouth... And yet still the keyboard keys clacked above her. It seemed the more she tried to distract him, the faster the sound of the keystrokes came, and yet she knew she was having an effect on him, his cock throbbing with his heartbeat. Finally he finished whatever it was he was doing (she was willing to bet that whatever he had been working on had an unusually high number of typos), and she felt one paw start to stroke her left ear. However just when she was sure she had his undivided attention he started to talk. "Don't let me interrupt what you're doing, but I've got a small job I need to you do" he rumbled, just a hint of panting in his voice. Tanj's tongue glided back and forth along the underside of his shaft as her head slowly bobbed back and forth, as she tried to keep up the "pressure" and listen to what he was saying at the same time. When he told her that she was to go to Smiley's station to negotiate for some less-than- common parts the pirates needed for their ships, she purrrred around his shaft, but when he told her that she was in charge of both the mission and the negotiations with the supplier, she almost bit him... As his words finally ceased, Tanj found herself shifting from gentle teasing to working hard on his cock, her head rocking back and forth with increasing vigor, driving his shaft between her lips, until its head repeatedly bumped the back of her throat. It wasn't long before he was moaning, both paws clutching at her head, and an even shorter time before his cock was spurting, his hot cum splattering the back of her throat. That evening she made it abundantly clear, without the use of words, that she was enthralled to be given this mission, and the next morning, everyone in the cafeteria wondered what was up, with Tanj grinning like the proverbial Cheshire cat, and the lion yawning repeatedly, barely able to stay awake.

It hadn't taken Wanda long to find out what was in the offing, and she grabbed Tanj at the first opportunity... "Tanj, I hear we're going on a trip" the wolverine lass purrred, a smile on her face. Tanj was still a little doubtful about taking Lord Xylex's daughter, a nominal hostage, away from the station, and narrowed her eyes as she looked at Wanda; "Our agreement was that I had a place on the ship for a medic; how are you coming with your studies?" Wanda beamed and held up a certificate for Tanj to see; it proudly proclaimed that Wanda had achieved her Licensed Practical Nurse rating, from the Ceres Sub-space University. Tanj smiled; "Wanda, that's a great start, and in record time too! But I'm not sure its good enough... tell you what, let me talk to the boss and I'll see what I can wheedle him into..." Wanda's face fell, but she nodded and gave Tanj a hug, before heading off.

That night, Tanj had done her best to "persuade" the lion, "talking" to him as she sat astride his hips, slowly rising and falling on his cock. Unfortunately he hadn't been suitably distracted, and as he reached up to squeeze Tanj's breasts, had informed her that he didn't think now was the time... maybe later. The next day, Wanda had taken the news remarkably well, a fact that should have alerted Tanj...

As they prepared for the trip, everyone seemed to have their own little requests to make. Tanj had a long list of things they needed, an even longer list of things that they'd like to have, but somehow it seemed each ship captain, crew chief, or maintenance head had a personal agenda that hadn't made it to the "official" list. And each of them took her aside to give her a slip of paper, asking her to try and get those items... And sometimes they weren't even "work related". Slasher wanted a case of whiskey. Bethany wanted some catnip. Amanda wanted some sexy lingerie to impress a new boyfriend... And so forth. Tanj was going to have a busy trip... Especially as she'd arranged to meet one of her own field agents at Smiley's station. She'd been dealing rather anonymously with this guy for months now, and he always had provided good information, concise and accurate... Still she felt that with some personal contact, she might get a better handle as to how to interpret the information he sent her way... With a smile she thought that perhaps with a "personal" touch she could inspire him to greater efforts, too.

Tanj walked across the docking bay, lost in thought, reviewing all her preparations for the trip, trying to think if she'd forgotten anything. She was so lost in thought that she almost walked right into the lion, as he stood by the airlock. Her head jerked up as he grabbed her, his paws large and strong on her upper arms, her eyes going wide in surprise. He seemed amused by her preoccupation and kissed her on the nose softly as he looked into her startled eyes; "Just thought I'd see you off, and ask if you've forgotten anything?" Tanj's thoughts again turned to her preparations and she mumbled... "Food, ... fuel, ... life support, ... weapons... money... Crew's already on board... flight plan filed, clearances granted... got our fake ship's ID's and our papers... Got the list of everything we need... preflight's done, and everything's green... No, can't think of anything we've forgotten..." Tanj's eyes rose to look at her master, beseechingly, as if asking confirmation that she hadn't forgotten anything, but he just T'sk'ed and shook his head. Reaching out to touch her collar, he smiled; "And what do you think this trader you're going to dicker with is going to think when you walk in wearing this?" Tanj's jaw dropped and she blinked, both paws going to touch her collar... Before she could speak, the lion shook his head and told her to turn around. As she looked out across the docking bay, she felt him gather and lift her hair, to slide something around her neck; then there was a snick and her collar was falling away... Tanj had to fumble to catch it, but once she had caught it, she raised her paws to examine the simple gold ring that now encircled her neck. The lion rumbled; "I'm told its called a 'torque'" as Tanj turned, to examine her reflection in the freighter's main deflector dish. It might have been a lady's fancy jewelry...or a collar pretending to be jewelry... Turning back, she sought out his eyes, to stare wordlessly at him, a confused expression reflected in her own eyes. The lion smiled, seeming to know exactly what was going through her mind; "You know you'll always be mine, but in public, you will pretend to be free, letting no trace of your true condition show, nothing that might compromise your mission. When you return, you can replace that with your true collar, but while away, you'll wear that, or something similar, to remind you of who, and what you are." Tanj just nodded dumbly and rose to tiptoes to kiss him goodbye, and then without a backwards glance, her collar still in her hand, she boarded her ship and sealed the airlock.

Tanj slid into the Navigator's station chair on the small freighter's flight deck, and nodded to Mark, already in the pilot's seat. "Go ahead and contact Ops, and request permission to launch. I've got all our clearances, and I do believe we're ready to get this show on the road." Mark nodded, tilted his head with a little smile as he looked her over for a moment, and turned back to his console, hitting the transmit key. As he talked to the duty furr in Ops, Tanj knew he'd noticed the absence of her collar. The ship lurched as Mark lifted off from the deck, the landing pads folding smoothly into the hull, as they glided towards the launch port. Forcefields crackled around the hull as the ship passed through the tunnel and into space. Tanj watched Hinoki at the sensor station, as she listened to Mark talk to departure control, and then the ship's sublight drive was engaged, the asteroid station falling behind them rapidly.

Hinoki finished his sweep of the area, noting the mining craft moving to and from the station, checking the area for "prying eyes" that might notice their departure. Everything seemed clear, and with a sigh he settled back to watch the starscape through the forward viewer. After a bit he turned, and looked at Mark; "We got a ways to the first Jump Point; I'm going to go get a cup of coffee; you want one?" Mark smiled and nodded; "Sure; cream and sugar, if you please." Hinoki nodded and rose from his station chair, stopping to look at Tanj on his way out; "Tanj you want... hey, what happened to your collar. GOOD LORD, DID THE BOSS SET YOU FREE???" Tanj just snorted and shook her head; "Nope, not at all; its just that while we're away, I've been instructed to "pretend" to be a free fur." Twirling her collar around one finger, she grinned at Hinoki; "This goes back on when we get home, and let me tell you, it feels passing strange for it not to be around my neck. Its almost like I'm looking forward to getting back, so I can put it back where it belongs..." Hinoki just gave her a funny look and nodded, a short abrupt motion; "Uh, well, you want a cup of coffee?" Tanj stared at the viewscreen as she nodded; "Yeah, thanks. Black."

Zassa followed Hinoki onto the bridge when he returned, helping him carry one of the cups of coffee. Hinoki for his part put Mark's cup in the holder by the pilot's seat, and settled back into his station chair, his eyes running over his board, making sure that nothing unusual had cropped up. Zassa handed Tanj her cup, and she took a long sip as she looked over the Engineering board, and then changed modes back to Nav to check their progress. Looking up, Tanj found Zassa still staring at her. "Hinoki told me the boss had unlocked your collar, but I just had to come see for myself..." the vixen purrrred. Tanj shrugged; "He felt that a slave commanding a freighter would raise too many questions..." Mark interrupted; "Coming up on the first jump point, Captain..." Tanj grinned and nodded; "Jump when your board's green, Mark." Tanj changed the mode of her board back to engineering, to give the jump drive another quick look, watching the power levels surge as Mark jumped the ship into hyperspace. When everything had stabilized, and all the instruments were lined out, she turned back to Zassa; "You know, I suppose we could just take the ship and head out, to go wherever we wanted to. We could leave the Brethren behind and they'd NEVER find us..." Hinoki shrugged; "We could do that, I suppose... and yes, the Empire's big enough they'd probably never catch up..." Zassa added; "And we have all the resources to change our registration, forge new identity papers... We've even got some cash... but would you REALLY want to do that?" Tanj sighed; "You know, when I was first captured, and sold as a slave, I wanted nothing more than to escape, to regain my freedom. Now... I dunno, maybe it's the conditioning, but... I've got friends, AND loves back there... back "home". I don't think I could ever just take off and leave them..." Hinoki smiled and turned back to his board, sweeping a volume of hyperspace around them in the unlikely event that there was another ship nearby. Zassa patted Tanj's shoulder as she turned to leave the flight deck, and in the pilot's seat, Mark just shook his head, nodding to himself with a silent inward chuckle. Some 'slaves', indeed... maybe there was some hope yet.

The next 'day', as indicated by ship's time, Tanj was sitting in the freighter's small wardroom, going over her papers, and the papers for her crew, double-checking to make sure that there'd be no problems at Smiley's. Places that dealt on the shady side of supply often went to great pains to know who they were dealing with, fearing the police, or worse, the Empire. And Smiley's was supposedly a place where you could get anything you needed, no questions asked; that was why they were going there. She yawned and turned to look a the back of one of the documents when Wanda moseyed in, to pour herself a cup of coffee. "Mornin', Tanj" the wolverine lass mumbled. "Mornin', Wanda" Tanj replied, rather distractedly. It wasn't until two minutes later, after Wanda had left with her cup of coffee that Tanj's head snapped up. She stood, knocking over her chair to yell "WANDA!" at the top of her voice.

She found Wanda down in the cargo bay with Zassa. They'd set up a handball court in one corner, using some polyboard, and were jumping back and forth, each trying to swat the hard rubber ball. Tanj watched for a moment, scarcely able to believe her eyes. Finally she could hold it in no longer; "Wanda, WHAT are you doing here?" Wanda deftly caught the ball, and turned to face the Cheetah; "I thought Zassa wasn't getting enough exercise, so we set up the court here. I promise you both that by the time we get back, she'll have lost two kilos and have much improved muscle tone..." Tanj shook her head; "Not THAT! What are you... I thought I told you the boss said you couldn't COME ON THIS TRIP!" Wanda just smiled and nodded; "You did. But I wanted to come anyways, and decided to follow an old and honored tradition; stowing away!" Tanj groaned. They were too far out to turn back now. And her master was going to KILL her when he found out... "Wanda, you've gotten us in a lot of trouble, and I intend to make SURE you don't get us in any more!" Wanda giggled; "I figured there'd be punishments involved... and I'll take whats coming to me, just so long as I get to do some SHOPPING!" Zassa grinned; "Ooooooh, punishments! Yes, she needs to be punished! Captain, Ma'am, please may I punish Wanda?" Tanj just groaned.

Tanj had every intention of punishing Wanda for stowing away. She just didn't know how. She certainly didn't want to hurt her, but SOMETHING had to be done... That evening, at "shift change" she kissed Mark on the flight deck; "Sure you don't mind sitting this one out?" she purrrred. Mark grinned and shook his head; "Not at all. Besides, who else on board COULD you trust with the controls while there's an orgy going on, anyway?" Tanj grinned and gave the mouse a hug and headed aft towards the cargo bay. Zassa and Hinoki had rounded up Wanda, and had her kneeling in the cargo bay, completely nude. Well, since they'd cleared the pirate station, clothing had been pretty much optional anyways... Tanj grinned as she saw that they'd made her adopt a slave's position, kneeling with knees widespread, paws on her thighs, back straight with head bowed. Marching right up to her, Tanj looked down at the kneeling wolverine lass and demanded; "Are you ready to receive your punishment?" Wanda mewled in a small voice; "Yes, Captain." Tanj grinned and shook her head, glad that with her head bowed, eyes downcast, that Wanda couldn't see the expression on her face; but it was obvious that Zassa and Hinoki had caught it. Tanj grinned at them and silently mouthed; "I just can't get used to being called 'Captain'."

Tanj did her very best to resume her stern expression. "Wanda, your presence has made me quite uncomfortable, and as a result, I am determined to make you just as uncomfortable. Zassa has a little... fashion accessory that I want you to wear. Until further notice." With that, the vixen moved into Wanda's line of sight, holding a leather and steel contraption... it looked like a chastity belt, with a thick leather strap for around the waist, and another that would descend severely between the thighs... In a strategic place it had a hard and inflexible, yet padded plate that completely covered her sex, preventing so much as a touch... And just "behind" that a rather severe butt-plug. Where the straps joined in front and back was a riveted reinforcing metal plate, where the shield over her sex met the strap from the butt-plug, was an integral lock. Hinoki rose to help, with a grin, and shortly, the device was locked around Wanda's loins. "The key that opens that is chained to the ship's head (toilet); it however will stay in the lock, until the two halves are reconnected; thus, you can go to the bathroom anytime you like, but can't leave without refastening the belt" Tanj smirked. "The other part of the punishment is that in stowing away, you've caused us to have to "watch" you, although I admit, "watch over" might be more accurately. In doing so, there are... activities that some of us will not be able to participate in, as I'll have to assure that you're... Protected. And as such, there will be activities that YOU will not participate in..." Tanj smiled as Wanda stiffened; "No, I'll take you shopping with us; I wouldn't deny that to any of the rest of the crew, and if we're to watch over you, then you'll have to go along... BUT! I am going to make you WATCH us, as we make love to each other, and will NOT let you join in. That's the point of the chastity belt. Even as you can't give yourself pleasure." Wanda just moaned.

Tanj made sure that Wanda remained kneeling there, in the cargo bay, as she and Zassa wrung Hinoki dry, draining him of every drop of cum his poor balls contained.

Tanj's eyes snapped open with an almost audible "click." It wasn't the overhead of her miniscule cabin on her freighter that she saw, but a blue sky, with cumulus clouds. Wind tugged at her fur, a spray of sand stinging the left side of her face, the sound of the surf in her ears. She tried to raise her head, to look around, only to find that her hair had been gathered at the top of her head, braided, and the end of the braid secured somewhere behind her; she couldn't raise her head more than a few inches. Turning her head left, and then right, she made out that she was laying on a beach, spread-eagled, her wrists, her ankles, and her tail (and presumably her hair as well) bound to large stakes driven deep into the sand. A ball gag filled her mouth, and there was an interesting presence between her legs, as if her pussy had been filled by a thick dildo... except the wind was whispering where it usually wasn't felt, and she wondered if it was some sort of a tube was holding her open... As she looked, she realized that she was at the very edge of the high tide line; the sand went from flat, through a little dip, to the slope that the water advances upwards with the rising tide. Her head was positioned such that the little lip, where the sand went from horizontal, to almost vertical for a few inches, was right at the back of her neck, her body below the high tide line. "Well" she thought to herself, "If the tide comes in, at least my head should be above water..." Squirming around a little, she assured herself that she was tightly bound, with no apparent hope of escape. Taking another look, she realized that she was bound with black braided cord of a type she'd never seen before, and she wondered how she'd come to be here...

There was nothing to do, but lay there, the sun rising to her left, slowly traversing the sky, the day growing hotter as it rose. In fact, things were getting quite warm, the heat causing the cheetah fem to pant lightly. The metal of her nipple and pussy rings were absorbing the rays of the sun faster than her fur was, and her tender bits were getting uncomfortably hot. As if to cool her, however, the wind, which had been blowing sand at her, seemed to be strengthening, the sand stinging her sensitive nose, forcing her to turn her head to the right...

The crab was driving her crazy. It would skitter across the sand, to poke at her, as if trying to figure out if she was edible, and then as the cheetah squirmed, it would skitter off, to look at her. The damn thing just wouldn't go away, and leave her alone. It approached again, to claw its way up her right side, its sharp claws dancing across her tummy, and as she howled into her gag, and wriggled, it hopped off to her left. Squinting into the wind to her left, something other than the crab caught her attention, and she groaned as she beheld the darkening clouds, and the threatening sky. "Well, I suppose I could use the shade, and a nice cooling rain would be nice..." she thought to herself.

She was almost asleep, the crab having found more interesting things to do, when the first spray of water cooled the pads of her feet. "Well," she thought to herself as she looked through slitted eyelids at the position of the sun, "I suppose the tide had to come in eventually." She lay there, stoically, as the spray blew higher across her body, the waves first lapping at her feet, then her calves, until the water was surging up to her thighs. She moaned to herself, as the warm water felt like a hundred lover's tongues gently lapping at her. But as the tide inexorably rose, she found that the pressure of the waves would at first force her legs as far apart as their restraints would allow, and then as the water ebbed, would drag them back the other way, again, to the limits of her bindings. And with each wave, a little of the sand under her rump, under her back, would be washed away. She was slowly sinking! And all the while the sky grew darker, the wind fiercer, the sound of the waves crashing on the beach louder. She was beginning to worry, that perhaps with the storm, her head would not be high enough above the break in the slope of the beach that demarked the point of high tide, to keep her sufficiently safe, when the first wave soaked her crotch. She moaned anew as she felt the salt water flow through whatever spread her labia, to fill her like a weak douche. Again and again, as the water crept inexorably higher, the surge of the sea pounded her sex, invading her body, forcibly spreading her legs... The spray was breaking over her face, droplets of water occasionally running into her nostrils, and she was starting to have to concentrate on just breathing, when a monstrous wave covered her. It was gone in an instant, and she spluttered, clearing her nose, just as the next wave, not as forceful, surged up her body. She writhed against her bonds, seeking desperately to escape the periodic inundations, gasping for breath in the increasingly few moments when she wasn't covered in spray, when she woke up.

Tanj panted as she sat upright in her bunk, her chest heaving. "Just a dream" she kept telling herself; "Just a stupid dream..." She grinned at the memory of the warm water slowly lapping up her thighs towards her sex, forcing her legs apart, and at the feel of it surging into her pussy like an almost insubstantial cock... but then she thought to herself; "Don't dreams of drowning reflect feelings of being "over your head" in real life?" and wondered to herself if perhaps she had bitten off more than she could chew...

It was one of those rare times when the whole crew was together in the ship's tiny wardroom. Both Hinoki and Wanda were walking a little funny, each for obvious and slightly separate reasons. Tanj was just about to start her shift on the flight deck, and Mark had just come go off duty, frowning at a stack of printouts he'd brought with him; for the moment, as they got cups of coffee, or a snack, the ship was left to the rather sophisticated autopilot. Tanj chuckled to herself as she thought at least it wasn't so sophisticated that it could make the coffee too... Or drink it. Mark finally dropped the stack of paper onto the small table with an exasperated sigh and shook his head. "Captain, I'm afraid I have to report a security problem." Tanj looked up; "What kind?" The mouse indicated the hardcopies lying in front of him. "Our dear, highly paid, oh-so-expert forgers back home..." He stopped and shook his head again, then noticed everybody's attention had turned towards him by now. "Just look at these and tell me if you notice anything odd about them." He scattered the papers around a bit so everybody could have a look. Tanj grabbed a couple of sheets before anybody else could react, and scanned them. "Hinoki, male Cheetah, born...Zassa, female Fox...wait a minute, THEY USED OUR REAL NAMES?!? WHAT THE HELL WERE THEY THINKING???" Mark nodded solemnly. "Just what I'd been wondering myself." Hinoki interrupted; unnoticed by the others, he'd picked up another sheet of paper and looked it over with a slightly confused expression, and now he innocently showed it off to Tanj. "You mean this is your real name, too?" Tanj glowered and literally tore the page out of his hand; "Yes, and you will forget it IMMEDIATELY!" Zassa chuckled; "Why? What could be so horrible about your real name?" Tanj turned to face the vixen but before she could say anything, Hinoki burst out laughing, making her spin back around with claws bared. Still, it was too late to stop Hinoki. "Our brave Captain's name is named Sou Ky? Souky? Sooki? Sooooooooooooky!" the male cheetah chuckled. Tanj growled; "Ky is the family name, and its NOT MY FAULT if my parents decided to get... cute. I HATE that name, and if you're smart, you'll see to it that I never hear it again!" And with that, Tanj stormed out towards the flight deck, leaving her full cup of coffee on the wardroom table.

Hinoki looked at Zassa and the two of them both burst out laughing again. Mark sighed, shook his head and looked at a rather confused Wanda; "Since that's the name on the ship's papers, I'm afraid she's going to be hearing it a lot, in the week to come. I just hope that's ALL the trouble we're going to have because of that goof-up."

After a suitable cooling off period, Mark reheated Tanj's coffee cup, and took it to her on the flight deck. The cheetah fem was all curled up in the pilot's chair, looking like she was having a good sulk. Mark put the cup aside to hug her gently. "Want me to toss that silly cheetah out of the airlock for you, Captain?" Tanj chuckled in spite of herself. "Can't do that; he'd just turn into a navigational hazard for other ships, and he's got a JOB to do." She grinned in what she hoped would pass for a proper piratical expression. "Ask me again when we're back home, will you?" Mark nodded and mock-saluted. "Will do, Captain." Tanj grinned a moment longer, then turned serious again. "With a security breach like that, do you think we should abort the mission while we still can? Or should I break out the do-it-yourself forger's kit and see if I can re-do all the documents? Somehow I doubt my efforts will be up to the quality of the documents already prepared for us. There's a meeting or two that have been carefully arranged in advance; if we break off now, it'd likely set us back several weeks at least." Mark shook his head. "I've been thinking about just that for a bit. By all accounts, Smiley's isn't the kind of station that cares too much about just who uses their docks or if customers' names stay the same from one visit to the next. It's also well outside Elysium-controlled space proper. If we act normal enough and don't give anybody an excuse to pry TOO closely into our backgrounds, I don't think we have much to worry about. Just tell the crew to stay out of trouble, is all." Looking over the Nav console, he nodded to himself; "I'll relieve you in twelve hours, and four hours after that, we should be there. Have a nice shift." Tanj sighed and nodded and waved as Mark headed off to bed.

"Roger that, Lost Cause; you are cleared to approach the station. Keep your velocity under 15 meters/second. Your assigned berth is docking port A23. Please advise when securely docked, with engines secured, and we'll unlock the port for you. Landing Control Clear." Mark acknowledged his instructions and slowly moved the small freighter towards their assigned port. Like so many others, Smiley's station was a hollowed out asteroid, a strange hybrid of metal and rock, looking for all the world like a cyborg potato. Their port was on the far side of the potato, "aft" of the tower that held most of the station's sensors and transmitter arrays. Mark, as always, handled the ship smoothly, turning, and settling onto the airlock ring with scarcely a bump. At his signal, Tanj secured the in-system drives, and the maneuvering thrusters, and leaving one of the APU's running, slowly secured the ship's power systems. When all was secured, she nodded to Mark and he relayed the information to Station control. Tanj watched as they were scanned, confirming what they'd told Control, and then she heard, or more accurately felt, through the deck, the airlock's main locking clamps engage. It had all been completely routine and normal... and it felt sooooo strange.

Tanj had dressed carefully, wearing an old pair of work pants, worn, but still decent, and relatively unstained, and a simple work shirt. Hinoki wore cut-offs, a Tee shirt with a musical group's logo, advertising a concert tour from years ago... and of course his collar. The appointment they'd made with the trader they'd come to see wasn't for half a day, and Tanj wanted to go explore the station a bit, to get a feel for the place. As she fretted, checking her pockets for their papers, her multi-tool, and other knick-knacks, she thought back to the last time she'd departed a freighter for a station... Turning she looked at Mark, but before she could open her mouth, the mouse chuckled softly. "Now don't you go and panic on me for no reason. Whatever else this place is, it's NOT Elysium Station, there are NO 'Wanted' posters of you hanging on the walls or guards waiting to arrest you right outside the ship. Have fun, don't do anything TOO stupid -- you know what I mean, you've been there yourself -- and you'll be perfectly fine. Okay?" Tanj shook her head in amazement, and then nodded, and turning, led Hinoki through the airlock.

The docking ring was done in Industrial Grunge. It was moderately clean, but needed painting bad. And there was dust and grime in the corners between the wall and the structural ribs. Obviously the cleaning 'bots weren't keeping up with things. Still, the place was fairly busy, more than half the docking ports showing the name boards of different ships docked there. As they walked towards the nearest connecting tunnel, they noted free traders, like themselves, corporate freighters, mixed cargo packets (the kind that carried cargo and passengers on the routes not frequented by the liners), personal transports, and even a salvage and repair ship. If there were any corsairs docked, they were well disguised... And there seemed to be a singular lack of police, constabulary, customs, or military vessels...

In the hollowed out center of the asteroid, there was a biosphere of sorts, with plants and bushes, and a small circle of shops selling sundries, and the kind of supplies that ship's crews might need. There was a restaurant, a small jewelry shop, and three clothiers... all of which sold used as well as new clothing... and the inevitable souvenir shop. Somewhere there was reputed to be a less formal "bazaar" as well. As Tanj looked at the wares in the Jewelry shop, she watched Hinoki talk quietly to a few of the locals, asking the questions they'd discussed before heading out... questions that might lead to entrepreneurs that didn't necessarily have a shop in the hub... Finally, having scouted most of the public areas in the station, they headed for the one remaining frontier... the bar.

Every station like this had one. Sometimes more than one. The local watering hole. The place where information was traded, drinks were sold, and consumed, relationships formed and reinforced, friends made, enemies fought, and the troubles of life forgotten, at least for a moment. Tanj took a seat at the bar, half way down its length, its stool creaking as she settled herself. Hinoki stood there for a moment, until Tanj nodded to the stool next to hers, her action drawing a dirty look (but no complaint) from the bartender. Gazing at the few bottles behind the bar for a moment, Tanj sighed and simply ordered two Bheers for her and Hinoki. The barkeep placed the mugs on the bartop without comment, taking the proffered credit chip. Tanj took a sip, and turned on her seat, to look over the crowd in the bar.

Most of the furrs in the bar were spacers, or station workers. Most of them were in their own little cliques, keeping to themselves. Tanj smiled as she remembered how with the pirates, Raider ship crews flocked together, as did those from engineering, or those from the mining side of the operation. She sipped her bheer quietly, just watching, as Hinoki started talking to a rabbit seated on the other side of him. She was surprised as the stallion came up behind her, one hand on her shoulder, spinning her on her barstool. He grinned and leaned close, to say with a thick accent; "Waaaaal Little Lady, Ah'm afrayd Ah'm gonna have to call the cops on you..." And for a moment , Tanj's eyes went wide, as she wondered how in the Universe ANYONE had figured out who she was; then he continued; "'Cause you've just Stolen Mah Heart!" Tanj just groaned, and shook her head, and putting one paw over his nose, she shoved him back. He took it well, chuckling as he walked back to his cronies, to shrug. Just before he sat, he grinned back at her over his shoulder; "Ma'am, Ah PROMISE you, befowah you leave this heayah station, you WILL be mine!" Hinoki leaned out to one side, to look around Tanj at the Stallion; "Mister, believe me, you wouldn't survive a night with my mistress!" Tanj frowned as the Stallion put one hand over his heart, pretending to swoon, as his friends howled and cheered and laughed. Downing her beer with a toss of her head, Tanj reached out to grab Hinoki's collar, and as she dragged him off, calls of "He's in for it now" and "Oh, what a way to go" echoed after them. Hinoki just chuckled, and after they'd moved a couple dozen meters down the corridor, towards the docking ring, even Tanj was laughing. After a bit, she sobered, and the thought hit her, "That was the first time, that you can REMEMBER, girl, that you've turned down someone interested in your body... how strange! How VERY strange!" And then she grinned at Hinoki; "I wonder how he would have been in bed?" Hinoki just laughed.

The reason for their journey, for their trip to Smiley's, was to meet a furr reputed to be able to obtain anything, for a price. Tanj was convinced that the stories she'd heard, of this legendary "supplier" providing an Imperial cruiser to some rebels, or of some experimental computer systems so advanced that they were self-aware to some 'stock traders' were all pure bunk. But still, there were enough wild stories, that likewise, she was convinced that there was SOME foundation in reality. And thus she had dressed carefully for their meeting. The dress she wore was more conservative than she was used to, more risque than a lady would normally wear... She had decided to have Hinoki and Zassa accompany her, as a show of her "wealth" and "power", and also as "backup" in case things should go poorly. Hinoki was wearing a very tight pair of briefs that showed off his physique well, and the little slip of silk that Zassa called a dress was positively scandalous. Tanj smiled to herself as she led them both through the station, towards their rendezvous.

They had arranged to meet in the restaurant, and as Tanj entered, she found that the furr they'd come to meet, enigmatically named "Mooneyes," had reserved a private dining room. As the Matre'D ushered them through the door, Tanj stopped to assess her "opponent" in the upcoming negotiations. The room had only a single table, only about a foot high, surrounded by cushions. Reclining on the cushions, on the far side was a rather fetching Wolf fem, in a skintight black bodysuit. Tanj smiled, as she thought of her old friend Marla, and once again wondered where she might be. After giving Mooneyes the once over, she flicked her gaze over the kneeling male fox behind her. The fox was well muscled, wearing only a collar and a skimpy silken loincloth, and as she looked at him, again Tanj smiled, glad that she'd brought her own slaves...

"Remember who you are" Tanj said to herself, and then grinned again; "Scratch that; remember who you're SUPPOSED to be!" Padding slowly across the room, trusting that Zassa and Hinoki would know what to do, Tanj settled herself on a cushion, sitting cross-legged, to calmly regard the reclining Wolf fem. As she sat, Tanj observed that Mooneyes was giving her slaves a thorough once-over, and as the Wolf's eyes returned to Tanj, the Cheetah nodded; "Greetings, Mooneyes, I am... Captain Ky." Mooneyes smiled and nodded lazily; "I'm pleased that the Brethren sent the famous Tanj to negotiate with me... I've followed your exploits and had hoped someday to meet you." Tanj, for her part, struggled hard not to betray her surprise at this revelation, managing to control even her breathing; however, she sensed Hinoki stiffen behind her. Mooneyes smiled; "Don't worry; your secret's safe with me. Besides, few hereabouts would care who you were."

Tanj nodded slowly; "I'm... impressed with the capabilities of your... organization. Tell me; what, in addition to... supplies, might your organization be capable of providing?"

Mark gave Wanda an appraising look; "PROMISE you won't leave the ship?" The Wolverine lass nodded enthusiastically; "Nope, I'll watch the ship, won't let anyone in, won't go anywhere, won't use the comm, won't do ANYTHING to upset you or Tanj. Don't WORRY, Mark, I'll be good! You go and explore the station; you can TRUST me!" Mark looked her over again and then nodded. As he turned towards the airlock, he growled over his shoulder; "Don't disappoint me, Wanda!" And then as the airlock closed behind him, he smiled and stretched a little. Wanda would behave...for a while, at least. In the meantime, he felt like getting a look at the station, an idea or two which direction problems might come from, and perhaps even something decent to drink.

Tanj held out her cup as the fox refilled it with a light yellow wine. The dinner was progressing slowly, almost formally, with aperitifs, appetizers, and now soups. And each dish was accompanied by its own wine. The negotiations were progressing equally slowly, as Mooneyes kept changing the conversation to other topics, everything from the latest fashions (Tanj hadn't a clue), to the latest Imperial scandals (Tanj had some interesting tidbits from her intelligence activities that she was willing to share, much to Mooneyes delight), to the proper way to train a slave (Tanj held some interesting views on THAT one...). Each time Tanj tried to steer the conversation back to business, but after settling the next point, Mooneyes again would divert the conversation. It was almost as if she was trying to make it all last as long as possible... and Tanj couldn't figure out if she was being set up, delayed until the Imperial authorities could arrive to arrest her... or if Mooneyes was simply lonely. Or maybe this was just the way things were done in this part of the Empire...

Mark poked his head into the bar, to look around. Not quite his usual kind of place -- well, he reminded himself, simply joining a bunch of pirates wasn't what some people would call 'usual', but it'd do... He slipped quietly inside, to take up residence on a barstool near the door. After a few moments, the bartender quietly delivered his drink and he sat back to examine his surroundings.

Tanj wobbled a little as she held out her glass. Dinner had been delicious, and had left her a little more than pleasantly full. She'd fed Zassa and Hinoki morsels from her plate, following Mooneyes lead, seeing that they were well fed, but there'd been so much food, she felt she was still in danger of a massive belch. Ah, and the continuous flow of wines, and now an after-dinner liquor was testing her limits. She'd decided to follow Mooneyes lead and cease trying to discuss business; it was MUCH safer to merely talk, and she was finding Mooneyes good company.

Mark heard the tone of conversation in the bar change, with a few "Oh shit" and "Damn" comments floating to the surface. Looking up he beheld an incredible sight, as a truly massive lady Hyena pushed through the bar's door, to stride purposefully up to the bar. Mark shook his head in amazed disbelief as he gazed at her; she seemed to be solid muscle, her calves, thighs and stomach tight where her pleated skirt and crop-top exposed her fur. She moved with the heavy grace of a male Lion, and as Mark looked at her, he realized that she was actually bigger than any Lion he'd ever seen; in fact her size approached that of some of the equines he'd known... And it was obvious from the reaction of those in the bar that they weren't particularly eager to see her...

Finally the last of the deserts were finished, and the last glass of brandy drained. Tanj rose, a little unsteadily, to bid her hostess good night."Tomorrow; we'll finish our business tomorrow... " Tanj slurrred. Mooneyes blinked and nodded, and then grinned; "As long as you have to come back this way tomorrow, how'd you like to exchange slaves for the evening? Peter is quite talented, and I'm sure he could give you quite a pleasant evening... and I have to admit I'm curious as to what your male could do..." Tanj blinked and turned to look at Hinoki as if seeing him for the first time. She could tell by the way he held his ears, and his tail that he found the prospect of interest... Turning back to Mooneyes, Tanj grinned and nodded; "Sounds good. But I've got to insist that whatever happens, you return him to me in condition to perform his chores; in other words, unharmed. Of course, I'll treat Peter the same way." Mooneyes smiled and nodded; "Always a pleasure to meet a responsible Mistress; of course, I'd agree to nothing less." Tanj nodded; "Why don't I meet you here for Brunch, say, um 1100 hours?" Mooneyes nodded and turning to Hinoki, crooked her finger in a "come here" gesture. Tanj nodded to Mooneyes, winked at Hinoki, and turned to leave, pointedly not glancing back to see if Zassa, or Peter were following.

Mark watched the Hyena fem eat from across the bar, displaying a casual disregard for table manners that at times made her look more like an animal fresh out of the wilderness than any sentient fur. As she finished eating, letting loose a belch that echoed off the walls, she looked up, and met Mark's gaze. She looked at him for a moment, neither challengingly, or flinching from his examination, until after a moment, the bartender said something to Mark, causing him to avert his gaze. "She's been coming in here for about five days now" the bartender, a Marten, said. "I think she got ditched by whatever ship she was on, although I can't say as I'd blame them. She certainly hasn't been very good company." Mark tilted his head quizzically. "Has anyone actually tried to get to know her?" The bartender snorted; "Yeah, a couple of the local studs tried to put the moves on her; they were all rebuffed, and when one of them persisted, well, you can still make out the indentation in that wall, if you look carefully. They tell me he should be out of regeneration in a few days." Mark winced lightly, nodded, and returned his gaze to the Hyena; "So what's she been doing here since she arrived?" The bartender shrugged; "Day labor. Loading and unloading ships, janitorial stuff... I heard that she took a job as night security somewhere, until she busted a drifter that wandered into her area. Emphasis on 'busted.'" Mark nodded softly again and continued to study her... Only to find her returning his gaze with a bit of a glare. After a second she said, in a voice that could be heard throughout the bar; "If you've got questions, what're you asking HIM for?" Mark blinked, then shrugged, gave the bartender a meaningful look, and stood up. "The lady has a point, you know..." The marten shook his head; "You've already paid your drink, so I'm not going to get in your way...but if anything goes wrong, where should we send the body?" Mark mumbled, "SV Lost Cause", picked up his drink, and started to weave his way through the crowd.

Tanj found Wanda seated just inside the airlock, obviously "on guard"... "Where's Mark" Tanj asked. Wanda looked up from her Nursing texts and then looked at a chronometer; "Dunno; he went out to stretch his legs on the station a while ago, and I haven't seen him. In fact, its been quite a while..." Smiling, Wanda looked up at Tanj, clicking off her reader; "Would you like me to go look for him?" Tanj shook her head emphatically NO; "No way, Wanda. You're not leaving without the whole crew; your father would be furious if anything happened, not to mention my... boss." Turning, Tanj looked at Zassa; "You'd better change into something a little less provocative, and go take a look for our Mouse. Check the bar first; that's the only place I could see him lingering. Be sure and check in with me when you return. Oh, and don't pick up any strangers; be good and I'll send Peter your way when I'm ready to sleep." Zassa grinned and nodded and hurried off down the corridor towards her closet sized cabin. Tanj sighed and shook her head and turned to head for her own cabin, Peter following.

Zassa strode quickly through the station; it wasn't that late at night, and there were still plenty of furrs about; it wasn't that she didn't think Mark couldn't take care of himself; somehow she thought it would take a small army to seriously threaten him, but she was concerned. And curious. And she was looking forward to seeing what the bar was like...

Peter slowly undressed Tanj, as she stood in the middle of her cabin. Each piece of clothing was carefully folded and hung up, until Tanj stood in just her jewelry. The fox looked at her with a smile, and cocking his head to one side, eyes bright, asked; "And how may I serve you, Mistress?" Tanj smiled, and traced the line of his jaw on one side of his face with a finger; "Lets see how well you can employ your tongue, to start, and then later, I think, we'll move on to see what you can do with that bulge in your loincloth..."

Zassa spotted Mark right away, the blaze of his white fur standing out in the somewhat darkened bar. As she stepped closer, she realized that Mark was sitting next to the biggest Hyena she'd ever seen. Ever even heard of, for that matter; the lady was as big as a horse! As Mark looked up, Zassa stopped at the edge of the table; "Ta...ah, the Captain sent me to check on you; Wanda said you'd been gone quite a while, and she was concerned..." Mark blinked, checked the time, then looked up at the Hyena, who flashed him a wicked grin, and back to Zassa; "Really? Darn...I'd no idea it'd gotten so late. Oh, Zassa, this is Mala; Mala, meet Zassa; she's the loadmaster on our ship." Zassa smiled and shrugged; "No hurry to get back, I suppose, she was just concerned..." A quick glance at the bar was all the signal that Mark needed to realize that Zassa was interested in idling here a few minutes, and he chuckled softly, exchanging glances with his new friend. "Go ahead and get yourself a drink, Zassa, I suspect I'll be a few more minutes...no longer, though, or the Captain is likely to get 'concerned' about you as well..."

Tanj purrrrred; she was sprawled on her bunk, both legs hanging over one side. Peter was kneeling by the side of the bunk, licking deep into her pussy with a dramatic exhibition of his skill, and his knowledge of female anatomy. As he labored softly, Tanj was struck by a stray thought; she wondered what he made of all her piercing...

Zassa put a couple of credits into the juke box, and pushed some buttons. She smiled as the music started, and as she walked back to her barstool, drink in hand, she swayed in time to the music. She knew that even dressed in work jeans and an old flannel shirt, she looked good, the eyes of almost every male in the place on her... As she took her seat again, the coyote a few stools away slid closer, to whisper; "Heya sexy; want to go back to my place? I've got some great audio recordings..." Zassa smiled and looked him up and down, but then shook her head; "Believe me, I'd love to, but my Mistress said I have to go straight back to the ship..." The coyote awwwww'ed and shook his head; "Such a mean Mistress! What ship you off of, anyways?..."

Tanj howled, clutching his head to her crotch as his tongue flicked over the perfect spot to drive her into the arms of another climax. She panted and moaned, her chest heaving, until finally she found the breath to say; "Enough! Stop! I need to catch my breath!..." Peter smiled and crawled up into the narrow bunk, to lay alongside the panting Cheetah, nuzzling her softly until she'd recovered enough to pull him over on top of her, with a grin.

Tanj mmmmmmmmed softly; she'd brought her knees up to her chest, and then grabbed her ankles, to hold herself bent double, as Peter slowly drove his cock in and out of her pussy. The fox was comparatively well endowed, and he certainly knew his business... Tanj was tempted to ask him where he was trained, or if he knew this technique, or that... She felt sure she could teach him a thing or too... But dare not ask. Here, he was supposed to be the "expert," and she still had secrets to keep...

Zassa was on the coyote's lap, her arms around his neck as they whispered back and forth, occasionally kissing. Mark had been talking to Mala for quite some time, and in one of the lulls that come normally to any conversation, he'd noticed Zassa. With a sigh, he checked his chrono and shook his head; "Well, Mala, looks like it's my turn to rescue Zassa; if I don't do something soon, I fear she'll be making a public spectacle of herself, and then we'll never make it back before the rest of the crew comes looking..." Mala giggled, a deep, throaty chuckle; "I'm not sure I'd mind seeing that...But you're right, of course. Will your ship be docked here long?" Mark thought for a moment and then nodded; "About three days, I think. I'll look for you here, tomorrow, if you'd like." Mala smiled, quickly scanned around to make sure nobody was looking, pulled the mouse up into her lap, and bent down for a brief, sloppy lick right over his muzzle and forehead. Then she set him down again, grinning ferally as she watched the blush spread under his white fur. "I'd like that, I think...if YOU think you're up to the challenge, of course. And if you think you can handle fighting your way through my usual crowd of fans..." She snorted slightly in derision at the end of her last sentence, then shook her head, her expression softening just enough for him to see in the dim light without anybody else catching on. "Fetch your loadmaster and get going, and I'll see you tomorrow." Mark nodded, gave the Hyena's huge paw a quick reassuring pat, and then turned to collect the protesting Zassa and lead her back to the ship.

It must have been their fifth, or sixth position, as they ran through their not inconsiderable repertoire, with Tanj on paws and knees on the bed, Peter taking her from behind. His endurance was remarkable, and Tanj had enjoyed three more very nice climaxes. While he seemed to be unflagging, Tanj knew he had to be getting tired, and lowering her chest to the bed, she reached beneath her, to tease his swaying ballsack with both paws; "With my next climax, you may cum, Slave" she purrrrred.

Wanda was still sitting in the chair, just inside the airlock when Mark and Zassa returned, but she was so engrossed in her homework she didn't notice them until Mark snuck up next to her and whispered "Boo!" Wanda then impressed them both by levitating at least half a meter straight up, in surprise! Looking accusingly at Mark, Wanda checked the time and shook her head; "Where WERE you two?" Zassa hugged Mark from behind and in a sing-song voice said; "Marks got a giiiirl-friend!"

Tanj and Peter were both laying on the bed, panting, when they heard the outer airlock door close, as Mark secured the ship for the night. With a grin, Tanj rolled over and swatted Peter on the ass; "Go find Zassa, and see if you can relieve some of her "tension." I'm sure that having seen all the studs in the station's bar, she's rather worked up..." Peter just grinned and with a small bow, slipped out, his loincloth in one paw. Tanj grinned and rolled over to turn out the light, too tired to clean up. Just before she fell asleep, she remembered to growl at the audio pickup that she was to be awakened at 0930 Hrs...

Tanj came awake with a start as the room lights came up, the computer insisting it was time to arise. Rising from the tangled bedclothes, she stretched and then grinned; her fur was a matted mess. She needed a shower... ah, but not just an ordinary shower... padding over to the comm, she called Zassa's cabin, and instructed her, and Peter (if still alive) to meet her in the ship's head (bathroom); she'd let the slaves bathe her and work the tangles from her fur and hair. "Besides" she thought with a grin; "They're both likely to need some cleaning up too..."

Tanj purrrred as the warm water sluiced over her. Using the trick taught her by her Master, she was having the two slaves wash her by rubbing their soapy bodies against her... and of course things had degenerated beyond simple washing... Peter's hard cock was pressing against the entrance to her back passage as he hugged her from behind, and Zassa's right paw was pressed hard over her mons, stroking her there... of course Tanj's right paw was returning the compliment, stroking Zassa in turn. The three of them undulated against each other under the running water, savoring each others touch, until they'd each had at least one climax, their juices adding to the stream flowing down the shower's drain...

Wanda was waiting in the corridor when the three emerged, nude, and damp. "Thought you three would NEVER get outta there" she grumbled, pushing past them into the Head. Tanj caught Peter giving her an appraising look, obviously curious about the belt locked about her loins, and smiled.

They were still all a little damp when they returned to the restaurant. Mooneyes was reclining in her usual position, Hinoki kneeling behind her. As she settled on her cushions on the other side of the table, Tanj smiled at Mooneyes; "Your Peter was quite good; you should be proud of him. I trust Hinoki was... satisfactory?" Mooneyes smiled and shrugged depreciatingly; "He has his talents, but I suspect I require a little more... discipline from my slaves..." Tanj raised an eyebrow in a silent question to Hinoki, but all she got back in return was a grin and a wink. Turning back to Mooneyes she nodded slowly; "True, he has been getting a little... "uppity" lately, and I suspect I'll have to give him a correction. Now, we do need to conduct some business, and I'd like to get that out of the way as soon as possible..." Mooneyes just smiled and made a gesture, and before Tanj could say another word, Brunch was served...

"Yes, I think we can use the XMP56C's" Tanj said between mouthfuls; "But your price is too high. New, those things go for only about 300 credits apiece." Mooneyes shrugged and sipped her coffee; "IF you can find them. There is a rarity factor to consider. But I do have them in stock, and in the quantity you require, although not at this location. Now the XMP54C's are almost as good, are much more commonly available, and as such are less expensive. But if you want the very best, sometimes you have to pay a premium..." Tanj sighed to herself. Mooneyes was a tough negotiator, but so far they'd come to terms on almost everything on her list, and within her budget too. "No," Tanj finally sighed; "We'll take the 56's, but my budget will only stand 420 credits apiece. Nothing more." Mooneyes thought for a moment, and then smiled; "At that price, I'll barely be breaking even... and as such, I think you should do something to sweeten the pot..." Tanj raised an eyebrow, but nodded; "Go on..." Mooneyes leaned back in her cushions, to look at Tanj over the rim of her cup; "Last night was interesting, with your slave, but I wonder what you might be like. Spend the night with me, not as a slave, but as a lover, and I'll agree to the deal." Tanj smiled; "Done!"

As they walked back to the ship, Zassa kept taunting Hinoki with tales of her time with Peter, and pestering him about his experience with Mooneyes. Hinoki for his part was obviously doing his best to drive Zassa wild with curiosity, telling her only that Mooneyes was a most strict mistress, and that while he'd found ways to bring her to a dozen climaxes, she'd never allowed him to cum. Other than that, he refused to go into details... and the more silent he became, the more Zassa's curiosity raged.

Peter knelt before his mistress, back straight, head bowed; "Mistress, I was not permitted to see the bridge, or the engineering spaces, so I was not able to determine anything about their ship's capabilities. From what I saw, it was a rather standard Free Trader... However, there was one thing of interest... There was a young Wolverine girl..."

Mark met them at the airlock, asking; "How'd it go?" Before Tanj could say a word, Zassa grinned; "You wouldn't believe what lengths Tanj is willing to go to, to make the deal!" Mark just smiled; "Oh, I don't know about THAT... But I take it that you've gotten us all we need?" Tanj nodded; "Almost all; some things, like those Jebson compensators, just don't seem to be on the market anywhere. But they were more "wish list" items anyways, than absolute requirements. Yes, I'd say the formal list is complete, now all we have to do is work on the "informal" list... Oh, and some of the stuff won't be here for a few days, so we're going to have to hang around for a bit. Mooneyes is throwing a bit of a party tonight, if you're interested..." Mark shook his head; "No thanks; if you don't mind, I'll just have a quiet drink in the bar again." He winked. "I know the kinds of parties you get into, after all...and I don't think I'm in the mood today. Just don't forget to lock the ship when we go; everything's gone well so far, but there's no point in pushing our luck."

Tanj had changed into something a little less formal, and a short while later, the whole crew had assembled at the airlock. "Mark, Hinoki, I realize that you two are probably not as much into "shopping" as the rest of us are, so I'll expect the two of you to keep a close eye on Wanda, and to maintain general security for the group. If you see something in one of the stores that you are interested in, let me know, and I'll take over for you. Got that?" Mark and Hinoki exchanged looks and then smiled, nodding, chorusing "Yes Captain!" Tanj sighed and led the way from their small ship, waiting to make sure that the airlock was sealed and locked. Finally she pulled one of her own hairs, to step forward and with a lick of her fingers, "stick" the hair between the airlock frame and door. The crew watched her carefully, and when she turned she shrugged; "If the hair is missing when we come back, we'll know someone's been on board. If the hair has been moved, we'll know we were boarded by someone very professional... I know, I know, the security systems are state-of-the-art, but you know as well as I do that there are those that can bypass even those. This is just my way of 'making sure'..."

The first place they stopped was the clothing store specializing in "work clothes." Zassa had a list from folks "back home" and between the five of them, they rapidly fulfilled most of the items on the list, adding some things for themselves. Burdened with packages, they headed for the next store, a place carrying slightly more trendy, fashionable clothes, and there, Hinoki and Mark watched, with semi-bored expressions, as the ladies searched through the racks, looking for "just the right outfit".

Tanj held the dress up to her and looked at her reflection; it was an interesting dress, seemingly missing the right side, with nothing but ribbons holding the fabric, providing minimal coverage. "Ooooooh," Zassa grinned as she looked at the Cheetah's reflection; "That would go well for your "date" tonight!" Tanj stuck out her tongue at the impudent slave, but had to agree with her. Still holding the dress against her, she headed for the dressing room. When she emerged, the dress over one arm, she found Zassa waiting, with three outfits she was considering. Wanda was still over by one of the racks, an almost panicked look on her face. Padding over, Tanj inquired; "Whats wrong, Wanda?" The wolverine lass looked up and moaned; "They just don't have anything in my SIZE!" Tanj sighed and nodded; "They really don't have too much of a selection here... Maybe we'll do better at the next place..." Eventually, they'd made their purchases, and with even larger armloads of packages, they departed for the next store.

This one was more in the mode of a lingerie shop, with... Accessories. Again, Mark adopted a slightly bored expression as he stood watchfully by the door. Everyone else's eyes lit up as they spotted something of interest. Wanda, of course, was fascinated by the large selection of sophisticated vibrators and dildoes... Until Tanj came up behind her and told her in no uncertain terms "NO WAY!" Relenting a bit, the cheetah smiled; "Tell you what, I'll buy you a special, with all the attachments for your 18th birthday. But until then, why don't you look at this "butterfly" vibrator... that one works externally." Zassa was examining a latex body suit, with the most interesting... Protrusions on the inside of the crotch, and a plethora of straps, buckles and D rings. Tanj grinned at her; "Latex vixen?" Zassa just grinned and nodded. Hinoki was looking at a rather severe bright chrome cock and ball harness; "Well, now I know where Mooneyes got it" he mumbled to himself, drawing looks from Tanj and Zassa. Tanj raised an eyebrow when Hinoki picked one she thought would be a size too small and wandered over to the cashier to inquire about the price. Tanj's eye caught, of all things, a jar of cream. She read the label and her eyes widened; following Hinoki she went to the cashier, a rather sexily attired mink, and asked; "Does this stuff really work?"

Mark watched with amusement; he could see that his shipmates were all attracted to various items in the store, and he also noticed that each was stealthily buying special little gifts to "surprise" the others with on the voyage home. It looked like it would be an interesting trip...

As they exited the shop, Tanj saw Zassa stop, her gaze directed at a row of public comm booths. "Thinking of your family" the Cheetah fem whispered into Zassa's ear. The Vixen nodded. "You know we can't let them know where you are, or what you're doing. It could cause way too many problems and possibly even put them in danger, if they tried to find you. But I think if we're careful, you could send them a text-only message telling them you're OK." Zassa turned to look at Tanj; "you think so? The boss wouldn't be mad?" Tanj shrugged; "We're far enough away from "home" that even if the message is traced back here, they'll probably never find us..." Tanj shot a look at Mark, and the mouse slowly nodded; the motion almost indistinguishable, if you hadn't been looking for it. She then looked at Hinoki, who shook his head no, as if he wasn't interested in telling anyone he was OK. Smiling, Tanj took Zassa by the arm and led her towards the comm booths.

As they walked back to the ship, Zassa sighed. Her message had told her parents what had happened on her trip, how she'd been shanghaied into being a slave, but that she was now with some good furrs, happy, and working towards her eventual release. And she knew it would only spark more questions, that it could never be as reassuring as she wanted. And yet, she'd had to do SOMETHING...

They had a light lunch on board the ship, after stowing their purchases. And then some of their cargo showed up, and they were all busy stowing it in the cargo hold. As they worked, Mark asked Wanda; "I just remembered... how come you weren't interested in sending a message to your father?" Wanda snorted as she put her shoulder to a crate, shoving it sideways into position; "I send him letters periodically from the base; part of the "hostage" deal. He never answers. By winding up with the Pirates, I've ruined his plans for alliances by marriage, and therefore until I'm released, I'm useless to him. And if that's all I am to him, screw him!" Mark nodded and sighed, turning away to guide the next crate coming down the ramp, thinking to himself that somewhere down the line this situation would likely lead to some serious problems...

Zassa watched as the last crate was shoved into place, the tie-downs clicking into place. Some ships used magnetics to hold cargo into place, but Zassa had seen too many systems fail, and felt that the mechanical clamps were better; a power failure, or battle damage wouldn't send the crates flying. On the other hand, getting to the crate in the middle of the stack, was a LOT more difficult, should the need arise. Padding back through the ship, she found a bit of a line at the head; everyone wanted a shower, and as loadmaster her duties had kept her in the cargo hold longer than most. With a sigh, she turned to Mark; "Looks like I've got a bit of a wait. I think I'll use the time to take my unofficial list and go find that Rick guy on the station they say might help us get what we need." Mark looked the slightly dirty vixen up and down and then shrugged; "I wouldn't be gone too long, but I guess you've got some time..."

Zassa closed the airlock behind her, and strode into the station. Her worn and dirty overalls let her fit right in, and while she still drew the occasional appreciative stare, or whistle, by and large she moved anonymously through the station. Finally, she arrived at the hole-in-the-wall kiosk that was reputed to be where this Rick fellow conducted business. Sure enough, there was a rather hansom male fox behind the counter, one who smiled as the vixen approached his counter. Zassa gave him her most dazzling smile; "Hello, I'm, ah, looking for Rick." The fox smiled back; "I'm Rick; what can I do for you?" Zassa slowly unzipped a breast pocket of her coverall and pulled out a sheet of paper, the fox's eyes on her paw as she moved. Unfolding the paper, Zassa smiled again. "Some friends of mine back home are looking for some, ah, "hard to find" items, and I've been told you might be able to get them for me." Rick shrugged; "Could be; I've been known to find those hard-to-find items in the past; but there are no guarantees. What are you looking for?" Zassa smiled; "First off, a large jar of something called "Chutney"..."

Tanj emerged from the ship's head, still a bit damp. She'd taken a thorough shower, carefully washing her hair, knowing she should look her best for Mooneyes tonight, but also conscious of all the others that wanted to use the facilities. As she rubbed her head with a towel, she grinned at Hinoki, standing outside the door; "NEXT" she called, and with a grin, Hinoki slipped through the door, just as Wanda emerged from her cabin, a disappointed look on her face as she saw the door close behind Hinoki.

Rick shrugged; "Actually, I do have a few pounds of that Kilrathii catnip in stock, but its reserved for a... treasured customer who's ship should be docking any time now. Sorry, I just can't let you have it, at any price." Zassa pouted; so much of what was on her list he either didn't have, or wouldn't sell her. Looking at her watch, she realized time was getting late. "Tell you what, Rick; you package up the items we agreed upon, and I'll pick them up tomorrow. And if you can locate any of the other items, well, I'm on a tight budget, but there might be something else I could throw in to sweeten the pot..." With a smile she turned, but looking back over her shoulder, she gave him a wink; "I'll see you tomorrow." And with that she strode off, back down the corridor towards her ship, giving him her best sexy walk, ass and tail swaying.

Tanj had finished doing her hair, pulling it into a long braid hanging behind her, and had managed to get into the new dress she bought, and was on her way to the bridge, just to check, when Zassa came in through the port airlock. The Vixen took one look and let out a low growl of appreciation; "My, don't WE look SEXY!" Tanj grinned and did a slow pirouette, showing off her outfit. It was of a soft, clingy brown knit, the fabric flowing over her left shoulder, and down across her breasts. Along the left side, the dress descended to a hem line about three inches below her sex, daringly short. What made it unique was that from the right side, it looked as if some prehistoric monster had taken a swipe at it with its claws, gouging out huge hunks of fabric. There was a Vee of exposed fur just below her breasts, moving from right to left, the point almost at her left side. Slightly smaller Vees of exposed fur started at the upper curve of her right hip, at the apex of her right hip, and just below the curve of her hip, moving to the left almost to her crotch. The five points of fabric that managed to make it all the way across her connected in a line of gold clasps down her right side, and it was apparent that it would take little effort at all to unclasp them, the dress falling from her as a result. The skirt was short enough, that no slit was required for her tail. Zassa grinned as the Cheetah turned; "I bet that dress doesn't stay on you twenty seconds, when you and Mooneyes get alone."

Tanj grinned at the vixen and then shook her head, as if trying to force herself back to reality; "Where you been? I thought you would have fought Hinoki and Wanda both for first crack at the shower." Zassa sighed; "No, I got stuck in the cargo hold, and they all got in line ahead of me. I took the time to go see that Rick fellow we'd heard about. He's got some of the stuff on the unofficial list he'll let us have, but he's holding back on others. I'm going to have to find a way to "persuade" him..." Tanj just "Hmmmmm"ed and nodded, and as Zassa moved off down the hall towards the Head, the Cheetah sighed and wondered what kind of trouble they'd all get into on THIS one...

Tanj and Hinoki were waiting by the airlock when Zassa finally got out of the shower. Eventually, the vixen was ready, and the three of them once again trooped to the restaurant. Mooneyes was again reclining on her cushions behind the low table, with Peter kneeling behind her. "Sorry to keep you waiting" Tanj purrrred; "But it can be a bit difficult sometimes to cycle everyone through the shower when you've had a hard day" (the latter was said with a distinct look towards Zassa, who at least had the courtesy to look embarrased). Mooneyes smiled and nodded; "I know how life can be on a small ship like that..." Tanj seated herself (carefully, due to her very short skirt), and the waiter brought in the first course.

Mark dressed with some care this evening. Junior engineers didn't rate anywhere near the number of fancy outfits that sex slaves did, he reflected. And he hadn't spent a lot of his pay on his wardrobe, either...a shower, freshly brushed fur, and his best set of work clothes would just have to do, then. One of his small selection of removable stickers by way of a personal note; he chuckled softly at himself as he finally decided on 'Caution - Genius At Work'. Finally, after checking his overall appearance in the mirror one last time, he headed for the airlock. Wanda was again "on duty," her medical texts scattered around her as she worked on yet another homework assignment. "Watch the ship, Wanda, and don't let anyone but crew on board" Mark commented as he opened the inner lock door. Wanda went "Uh-huh", not even looking up from her work. Mark just grinned and as he cycled the lock, he turned back to Wanda; "No flying zebras, no orgies and no cooking classes..." Again to the mouse's amusement, Wanda just nodded "uh-huh", lost in her work.

Tanj sat back, propped up by one arm. Dinner had been delicious, but she'd fought her natural tendencies and had not gorged herself; she was merely comfortably full. As they'd eaten, Peter had entertained them by playing the flute, the soft music a compliment to the conversation. As the last of the dinner dishes were cleared away, Tanj smiled and turned to Zassa and Hinoki, to nod. Turning back to Mooneyes, Tanj smiled again; "Zassa and Hinoki have been working on a dance number, and I thought you might find it amusing." Mooneyes smiled and nodded in response, her eyes turning to the two slaves. The dance began, to music playing obviously in the dancer's heads. Initially it resembled classical ballet, perhaps with a small twist, because as they danced, as Zassa pirouetted, or Hinoki lifted her high in a leap, she lost this portion of her outfit, and then that, until the floor was littered with pieces of cloth. At one point, as she twirled by, on point, Zassa's paw reached out to snatch away Hinoki's loincloth. They danced on, coming together, separating, and coming together again, both now completely nude. Peter had been watching, and as they danced, his flute rose, to add a haunting melody to the dance. It may not have been the original score that they were dancing to, but it was brilliant improvisation. As they came together, Zassa would add little motions, caressing Hinoki's body with hers, until the Cheetah male's arousal was evident, his cock standing proud, but still they danced. At one point, Hinoki bent Zassa over backwards, his body pressed to hers, and for a moment, from the way Zassa moved, it almost looked like Hinoki had slipped his cock into her pussy; their bodies were in about the right position, as he bent her backwards... But then they separated, to dance on. The next time they embraced, they stayed together a bit longer, Hinoki gradually lowering Zassa to the floor, and again, the impression was that it was less dance and more lovemaking. Again, however, they rose, but this time it was apparent that Hinoki's cock was slick with the vixen's juices. Once more they came together, and again they wound up on the floor, Zassa arched severely as Hinoki covered her with his body, his hips moving in their own rhythm, doing their own dance. Eventually Zassa subsided to the floor, and after a bit, they rolled, Zassa sitting up astride the Cheetah, his cock clearly buried in her snatch. Zassa now danced solo, her motions more than mere love-making, as she clearly expressed her joy and passion through the motions of her body. Finally, it was clear they were both spent, and they collapsed together, to the soft applause of Tanj and Mooneyes.

Mark paused again at the doorway to the bar, to look about and find that he was early and Mala wasn't there. Well, not yet anyways. As he slid onto one of the barstools, the bartender raised an eyebrow, as if surprised that the mouse would actually push his luck by returning. Mark raised an eyebrow of his own in perfect imitation, then shrugged, grinned, and ordered a drink to pass the time.

Dessert gave the slaves time to catch their breath, and Mooneyes and Tanj talked about all the dances that they'd seen slaves do, and other various performances. After a while, Mooneyes smiled; "Yes, I DO like the way Hinoki moves. Especially the way he moved last night. Did he perchance tell you about it?" Tanj smiled; "No, not really, and I've been too busy to ask. Did you require anything particularly unusual of him?" Mooneyes smiled and shrugged; "Perhaps not, but if you're curious, perhaps we could get him to show you what was required."

Wanda looked up from her work, a puzzled look on her face; "No cooking classes?" Shaking her head she smiled and returned to her work, convinced the mouse had lost it.

At Mooneyes signal, Peter rose, lifting a cushion to retrieve several small items. Tanj cocked an eyebrow at them and then grinned; turning, she gestured to Hinoki to stand, so that Peter could "dress" him. Tanj watched curiously as the fox approached, to kneel between Hinoki's feet. The silver and leather contraption in his paws was compressed; apparently its two halves were spring-loaded... when suitably compressed, they were buckled around that space between Hinoki's balls and his torso, the fastenings stretching the skin of his sack deliciously tight, making them seem to bulge more than ever. It was when Peter released the device, that Hinoki groaned, as the springs expanded, forcing the lower fastening downward, the upper fastening braced hard against his body, the combined effect being to push his bulging balls away from his body. Tanj rapidly looked up at Hinoki's face, to see if he was in pain, and indeed there was some pain reflected there... And also embarrassment. But there was also a strange cast of pleasure to it... Tanj decided for the moment Hinoki could handle it, and looked back to see what Peter was doing next.

The fox was expertly stroking Hinoki's sheath, and as the Cheetah responded to his touch, his cock emerging from his sheath, Peter held the linked rings of a "Gates of Hell" just so, such that his cock pushed through the center of each ring. As he grew harder, the rings became tight, encircling his cock from its base to its head. When he was as hard as he was going to get, Peter clipped some retraining snaps to the ball-stretcher, and then sat back. Hinoki's face was again a strange mask of both pleasure and pain, as the tight rings constricted his cock, and the springs pushed at his balls.

Mooneyes growled low in her throat as she beheld the cheetah; "Now comes the really fun part, and if I might designate your slave Zassa as the object of his attentions..." Tanj shot Zassa a quick look and saw only naked lust on her face as she stared at Hinoki's crotch; turning back to Mooneyes she smiled and nodded; "Of course..." Mooneyes smiled and turned to Hinoki; "Slave, you are to fuck the vixen to climax, as slowly as possible. And you are NOT to cum yourself, or those little toys will stay on for a full day." As Hinoki turned to walk carefully over to Zassa, he looked thoroughly embarrassed, and more than a little excited.

Mark looked up and smiled as the Hyena stalked into the bar...then, after a moment, frowned in concern. She looked like she'd had a bad day at work, her overalls torn in one place and rather filthy. She growled at the bartender, snarled at a table occupied by some of the station's crew, and dropped into her usual seat in the corner. Mark looked up at the bartender; "Why don't you give me one of what she usually drinks, and I'll take it over to her." The bartender looked at the mouse as if he was crazy, but then shrugged and nodded; "Better you'n me..."

Tanj grinned and moved over to snuggle with Mooneyes as they watched Hinoki perform. The looks on the Cheetah's face alone were engrossing; ranging from pain to pleasure to concentration, as he slowly fucked the vixen. Zassa for her part was enjoying the sensations of his ring-encased cock driving in and out of her, moaning and shuddering as each ring forced its way into her, or as it slipped out. Hinoki had started with the standard missionary position, but after a while, he'd flipped the vixen over onto her hands and knees, to take her from behind. Tanj gave Mooneyes a teasing lick, as she watched Zassa's first climax arive, watching Hinoki's massive struggle to retain his own control.

Mooneyes and Tanj were getting into some heavy petting, Zassa was howling through yet another climax, and Hinoki was having the devil's own time controlling himself. Of all present, only Peter was quiescent, kneeling calmly back by the wall. There was something about the look on his face that Hinoki found somewhat disturbing... It was almost a self-satisfied look, as if everything was going according to HIS plan...

Mark set the bottle down on the table and turning the chair opposite the Hyena around, sat down to look at her, his arms crossed across the chair's back, his chin resting on them. They looked at each other quietly for a moment before Mark nodded softly and asked, "Rough day?"

One of Zassa's cries attracted Tanj's attention, and she turned to look at her and Hinoki. The vixen looked thoroughly drained, fucked to a quivering pile of fur, and something in the back of Tanj's mind was just a little jealous of that. Hinoki on the other hand, looked as if he were about to explode. Tanj smiled and raised her head; "Very impressive, Hinoki; absolutely amazing self control. You may cum now. When you've recovered, why don't you and Zassa and Peter retire to the Kennels. You have my permission to enjoy each other as you see fit. I'll call for you in the morning." As she turned back to Mooneyes, she heard Hinoki's long drawn out howl of satisfaction and release, followed by Zassa's yips of pleasure, and smiled.

The Hyena shook her head; "They FIRED me! Said I was incompetent! I'd loaded that bulk freighter within the specified time limits, hadn't broken anything, hadn't damaged anything... I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG! I honestly don't know WHY everyone here seems to have it in for me!" Mark sighed and nodded, reaching out to put his paw over her fist. "So what are you going to do now?" Mala sighed; "I dunno. Haven't been able to save enough money to buy passage off the station, and haven't been able to find a ship that'll take me as crew. I don't know WHAT I'm going to do..."

Tanj and Mooneyes retired to Mooneyes' quarters; as they walked their paws continued to explore each other, teasing, keeping each other hot... They left a trail of clothes from the front door, not that Tanj was wearing all that much... Mooneyes acted as if she wanted to lead Tanj into the Bath, but the cheetah fem had other ideas, pushing the wolf back onto her bed with a soft M'rowl. Before long, Tanj was crouched over the she-wolf's body, her tongue working actively between her legs, the wolf's tongue between her own. Soothing the burning in her own wet sex...

Mark lightly tapped his muzzle with his index finger, then inconspicuously looked around, checking for eavesdroppers. There were none, and the little warning light on his chrono remained green, thus informing him that nobody had left any bugs in the area either. He lowered his voice a little anyway, just to be on the safe side. "You told me yesterday that you've served with the Imperial Marines for some years...right?" Mala nodded quietly over her drink. The mouse smiled, remembering Ben complaining about the Brethren's recent shortage of professional (as opposed to merely enthusiastic) boarders just a couple of days before they'd left. "Then I think that, pending the Captain's approval, I may be able to get you JUST the kind of job best suited to your talents." The Hyena raised an eyebrow and leaned closer; "Tell me more..."

Tanj's tongue danced over the wolf fem's clitty, eliciting moans and gasps, and a temporary respite from the delightfully distracting licks of the she-wolf. Tanj grinned to herself; it almost seemed like a contest; who could so pleasure the other that they would loose concentration first... And as she grinned to herself, and squirmed her tongue between the she-wolf's velvet folds, Tanj thought she was winning...

Mala sat back to look at the Mouse in front of her; "Really? Yeah, I could do that, and probably do it better'n most, too...but if you don't mind me asking, why ME out of all the furs on this station?" Mark paused, taking a sip of his own drink -- horrible stuff, really, but the bartender had just looked at him blankly in response to three different requests -, and reflected on his answer for a few moments before looking up. "Several reasons. First, you've obviously had more than your share of bad breaks lately, and I'd like to help if I can. The second you've probably guessed already; I've gotten to know you a little by now, found I rather like who you are, and I'd like to get to know you better YET, which I can't do if we leave you behind..." His voice trailed off momentarily as he watched the Hyena's grin slowly grow wider in response to his own spreading faint blush, then he cleared his throat and continued. "Third, we really can use your skills. Blasters-for-hire with itchy trigger fingers we have in plenty, but there's currently a real shortage in terms of trained professionals." He leaned back and grinned a little at her in turn; "And fourth, after all that I've told you, you obviously Know Too Much and we can't afford to leave you behind, anyway." Mala threw her head back and laughed out loud at that, a deep, barking sound that turned every head in the bar and caused several patrons to duck for cover.

Tanj purrrred, while Mooneyes snored softly; the bed was soft, and she was tired, and fairly happy, but for some reason her mind just wouldn't shut down, and let her sleep. She reflected on how very strange it was to be playing this role, instead of the one she'd been so trained for at the Academy. But why should it be strange? Before the Academy, this was the future she thought she'd been on track for... Most of all, it feels STRANGE to choose a sex partner, instead of being chosen. It was nice, but the more she thought about it, the more she realized that nothing thrilled her like someone clipping a leash to her collar... As she snuggled against the sleepy wolf she marveled at how much she'd changed...

Mark and Mala stopped at the airlock to his ship. They'd practically held hands on their walk from the bar, drawing more than a few stares. Mark looked up at her; "I promise, as soon as the Captain returns, I'll talk to her. And I'll get back to you with the results tomorrow." The Hyena rumbled quietly and easily picked the mouse up to bring him muzzle-to-muzzle with herself. "You do that. And if she doesn't agree...", she slipped a huge paw between his legs and teasingly stroked him through his pants with one extended finger, chuckling as he squirmed in reflex, "...make sure to pack everything you'll need here, because one way or the other I'm going to KEEP you." She pulled him close to trap his muzzle with her own in a deep, hot kiss for a couple of seconds, then set a rather stunned Mark back down with a toothy grin. "That's enough for now. Be a good little mouse and there'll be more...now run along before somebody catches you molesting innocent little hyena fems."

Tanj moaned, gradually returning from her slumbers, awakened by the most delightful sensations. Mooneyes had squrmed around, and they were again head to tail, but now the she-wolf was teasing Tanj's still-wet sex with the head of a buzzing vibrator... Tanj stretched the way only a feline can, and then raised her knees, clasping them to her chest as Mooneyes growled, attacking her pussy with the vibrating little devil... As she gasped and moaned, one small part of Tanj's mind wondered where Mooneyes kept the toys...

Wanda was still at her desk by the airlock, hardcopy, disks and other study paraphernalia scattered about. Mark waved hello, still slightly out of breath, and shook his head lightly at the predictable lack of response. He stretched until his feet barely touched the ground and tapped Wanda on the shoulder. "Honey, I'm ho-ooome!" Wanda nodded, as she erased something and scribbled furiously in its place; "Uh-huh." Mark shook his head again; "What does a mouse have to DO to get some attention around these parts,anyway? Hm...hey, Wanda, you wouldn't mind if I brought a one-eye'd Wallaby contortionist to my quarters, would you? She's very talented..." Wanda just shook her head; "Nope...have fun." Mark grinned and nodded and sauntered off down the corridor, after checking to make sure the airlock was secured.

Tanj had found where Mooneyes kept the toys, and had found a strap-on dildo that she was now using to pleasure the she-wolf with. She grinned as each thrust of her hips made the little bumps inside the harness grate delightfully on her clitty, the strap between her legs so tight that it had actually spread her labia. She mmmmmmmmed, and moved with varied frequency, from slow and languid through rough and manic, thrusting the dong at the She-wolf until she howled with pleasure.

Mooneyes finally did manage to drag Tanj into the baths... At about 1100 Hrs... There, Tanj thought back to the baths at the Academy, and with a grin on her face, showed the she-wolf all the things that could be done underwater... It was about 1400 Hrs by the time she made it to the kennels, to reclaim Zassa and Hinoki, both looking quite disheveled and sleepy. She just grinned and led them back to the ship. There, they found Wanda, face down in her notes and homework, sound asleep. Sending Zassa to the head first, telling Hinoki to wait until Zassa was done before hitting the shower, Tanj turned to try and coax the wolverine lass back to her own quarters and her own bed.

Tanj grinned and stripped off her dress; on her own ship, amongst this company, she certainly didn't need to be clothed, and it felt good to move about in just her fur. Wanda was all tucked in, Zassa had collapsed in her bed, and Hinoki was in the shower. Slipping into the Wardroom, she found Mark awake and reading a magazine as he sipped his coffee. "Mornin', Tanj. How'd things go with Mooneyes last night?" Tanj smiled and shrugged; "Pretty much according to plan; we had a nice evening, and an even better night. I'm running a little shy of sleep, but there should be plenty of opportunity for that on the trip back. Any sign of the last of the cargo?" Mark nodded and slipped the hardcopy over to Tanj; "Some of it should be here within three hours, the rest first thing in the morning. I've already applied for launch clearance for noon tomorrow." Tanj grinned and nodded; "Not that our stay here hasn't been fun, but I'm ready to go home." Mark nodded; "True. Quite true. Listen, Capt'n, I've got something I'd like to talk to you about..." Tanj stopped in mid-motion, as she poured herself a cup of coffee; Mark rarely sounded THIS serious without good reason... She finished pouring the cup and then sat down at the end of the table; after taking a sip, she looked at the mouse and nodded; "Continue..." Mark nodded; "I met this fur here, who seems to be having some trouble finding and holding a decent job on station. I've talked to her about her background a bit, and thought that she might be someone Ben might want to consider for his boarding parties..." Tanj thought for a minute and nodded; "You mean that ungodly huge lady Hyena Zassa's told me about?" Mark just nodded. Tanj thought for a minute, trying to picture the Hyena in full combat armor, coming through a ruptured airlock on some ship the pirates were trying to capture, and shuddered. It would most certainly be intimidating... but before she could speak, Mark cleared his throat and continued; "I've told her a little bit about the job requirements and our setup and she seems to think it an attractive position..." Tanj's eyes widened; "You mean you TOLD her about the Brethren?" Mark smiled disarmingly and nodded; "A bit difficult to tell her about the job without some of the background... After all, you wouldn't expect her to travel that distance to apply for a job without knowing just what it IS, would you?" Tanj groaned; "Mark... you KNOW we check the background of everyone we consider in detail before approaching them! Nothing could destroy us faster than taking an Imperial agent into our midst! You should never have told her about us without clearing it first..." Mark held up a hand, interrupting her. "With all due respect, Capt'n...that would take at least a couple of weeks including travel times, since we're cut off from Security at home, probably longer since I don't know of any other missions taking one of our ships in this direction anytime soon. And I do have my own sources..." He demonstratively tapped the side of his skull with a fingertip. Tanj sighed and shook her head; "I hope your telepathy is that good, Mark, because if it isn't, if you're thinking with your balls instead of your brain, we could be in BIG trouble..." Mark shook his head. "Brains, heart, AND balls, and they're all in agreement on this for once. Trust me, Captain, after the Blackstone debacle I'm not going to make the same kind of mistake again anytime soon. I mean, I knew the guy was a rotten apple, I knew what he was up to, and he still managed to catch me with my pants down because I simply didn't pay attention at the right time...ah, figuratively speaking, of course. I'm not going to let that happen again... Anyway, Mala is clean." Tanj just snorted and shook her head; "Well, you'd better invite her aboard; if I left someone here who knew about us, that didn't absolutely HAVE to know, the boss'd skin me alive! We'll just have to see what HE makes of her." Mark smiled. "Thanks. You won't regret it." Tanj growled softly under her breath; "I think I regret it ALREADY..."

Tanj pulled off her gloves and leaned against the cargo bay wall. They'd managed to get the next part of their cargo stowed, even if the phase inverter for one of the Brethren's cruisers had required them to move half of what they'd already stowed. The damn thing was HUGE, and it was heavy at one end. Zassa was having fits, arguing with the ship's computer about weight distribution, as they sorted through the shipping containers, searching out those that weighed the right amount, as they slowly assembled their jigsaw puzzle. But now it was done, and Tanj hoped they wouldn't have to re-do everything when the remaining cargo showed up. Zassa grinned as she went by, her walk turning to a sprint as soon as she was past Tanj. For a moment Tanj blinked in confusion, and then it hit her; the vixen was trying to beat her to the showers. Grinning, Tanj took off in pursuit, the cheetah fem rapidly gaining on the vixen; but Zassa'd had too much of a lead and the door to the head slammed just as Tanj got there.

Tanj finally got her turn at the head (in some things, it seemed, rank hath no priviledges). Gathering Zassa, Wanda, and Hinoki as "escort", and leaving Mark in charge of the ship, they headed out to once again give the local shops a going-over, determined to miss nothing. In the commons area of the station was a small bazzar, and to Tanj it looked like a semi-permanent "garage sale." Down on their luck furrs were selling what were obviously personal possessions, and shifty-eye'd types were selling things Tanj thought might not be their legitimate property... and mingled in amongst them were those more or less reputable merchants that simply weren't big enough to rent a proper "storefront." As they browsed, one of the sellers caught Tanj's eye. He motioned to her, urging her closer. Tanj wandered over, and the character, a rather small badger, missing one ear and one eye looked left and right, conspiratorially, as if to make sure they were not observed. He held up a small rectangular box of clear, thick plastic. Inside something black and oily surged back and forth, as if seeking escape. "Pretty Lady, this is a living creature." he hissed; "It is semi-intelligent, and communicates by telepathy through touch. Once released, it will spread over you in a thin layer, as if it were fabric. Your thought tells it what shape to take, directing it. It can literally be any dress or outfit you want." Tanj Hmmmmmed; "What does it eat?" The badger looked a little confused and then blinked; "...uh... it feeds off your body heat... It really doesn't require much maintenance..." Tanj looked at him sternly; "Then why all the secrecy?" The clerk paled; "Uh, because the, um, garment industry got them on the banned list. It would kill their business, y'see. Only asking 50 credits..." Tanj looked at it for a moment and then asked; "How do you get it off you when you're done with it?" The clerk smiled, a little more reassured; "By mental command, assuming its absorbed enough of your... body heat to be satiated. It'll just flow down your arm to its box..." The badger patted the box fondly, as if to suggest that the creature really liked being in there... Tanj looked over at the vixen and thought of the latex catsuit she'd bought yesterday, and grinned, thinking basic black might just look good on her too. With a grin she nodded her head in agreement and handed the clerk her credit chip.

Wanda held the dress up to herself and looked in the mirror; as she turned, the dress shimmered and changed color; now it was red; now blue and now golden... and when the light hit it just the right way, it wasn't there at all, turning to a shimmering translucency. Wanda grinned at her reflection in the mirror and nodded, turning to find the sales clerk.

Zassa looked at the little vial, and then back at the sales clerk; "Guaranteed to work?" The Sales clerk nodded; "Or double your money back..." Zassa Hmmmed; "I dunno; it seems kinda pricy. Any discount for buying more than one?" The clerk looked at her a little funny, and then shrugged; "Sure, I'll sell you three for the price of two." Zassa grinned and selected three different colored vials, and passed him her credit chit...

All in all, there wasn't that much at the bazaar, and they carried their purchases back to the ship. Mark was waiting at the airlock, dressed in some of his better clothes; "Got confirmation, Captain, on the rest of the cargo coming in. It'll be here at 0745 in the morning. Oh, and Mooneyes left a message for you; seems something's come up and she regrets her inability to entertain you tonight." Tanj just nodded; "I take it you want to go see your lady friend... I suspect some of us will swing by the bar later. Don't stay out too late; we'll have an early day tomorrow." Mark grinned and flipped Tanj an informal salute, and stepped through the airlock. Zassa grinned; "Ooooooh, party in the bar tonight! Last night in port!" and slipped off before Tanj could say anything. Wanda just smiled; "Any chance I can come too?" Tanj stared down the corridor Zassa had vanished down and nodded slowly; "Yes, but I'll expect you to be on your best behavior...AND to help me keep Zassa in line..."

Zassa grinned as she laid out her new outfit; it was a latex catsuit, complete with built-in socks for her feet, and gloves for her hands. It had the most delightful phallic plug in the crotch too; not that long, but rather thick; "It should be a joy to wear," she thought. Stripping off her "street clothes" she sat on the edge of her bunk and slowly started to shove one foot into the outfit, the latex stretching to form a second skin. By the time she was ready to pull the suit up over her hips, her pussy was already wet with anticipation, and the plug slid home nicely, although it took forever for her to thread her tail through the hole in the back of the suit. It took some contortionist's movements to get the outfit up over her shoulders, her arms in the sleeves, the gloves over her paws, but finally she was ready to try and pull up the zipper. Exhaling, she smoothed her fur with one hand as she tugged at the zipper with the other, and finally it was done. From the neck down, she was covered in shiny blackness. Every curve, every shape of her body stood out clearly, her nipples especially prominent. And the smooth little circle of latex between her legs made it obvious that the plug was buried within her sex. She grinned at herself and nodded, quite pleased with her appearance. Turning to one of the vials she'd purchased earlier, she grinned. The label read; "Vixen sex phermones; guaranteed to drive any fox wild!" Zassa grinned, and opened the cap, to sniff at the vial; the aroma of a vixen in heat almost overwhelmed her, and she hastily sprinkled a few drops over herself... and then for good measure she sprinkled a few more, until the vial was a quarter empty. "That ought to work" she grinned. Humming a popular tune, she headed out to see if she could "negotiate" anything else out of that Rick fellow...

Tanj pulled on a conservative pair of slacks, and a matching top. She too had an errand to run. One of the Brethren's contacts was passing through the station and Tanj had arranged to meet with him face to face. Slipping a variable knife into one pocket and a small stunner into another, she checked her reflection in the mirror of her cabin and quietly slipped out.

Rick looked up from his counter, and spotted the vixen coming his way while she was still quite a ways off. It looked like she'd been dipped in black paint, glistening as she walked, and he had to make a concerted effort to keep his tongue from hanging out. "I bet she's going to try and seduce me, to get the things she wants" he thought to himself. "And as good as she looks, I might just let her have a few items, to get into her pants... but just a few." He watched the way her breasts moved as she walked and grinned to himself, resolving to be the "user," not the "used."

Tanj made it to the observation port at the appointed time. This portion of the station seemed quite deserted; almost as if it hadn't been visited in years. And yet the observation port was at the end of a corridor, wide enough to see anyone coming, see anyone lurking. It was just deserted. Thankfully most of the ceiling lights still worked. Tanj stood by the port, looking out at the stars, and waiting for her contact to arrive, confident that her ears would give her ample warning of anyone approaching.

Rick's self-confidence started to evaporate as the vixen sashayed up to the counter of his stall. He'd been watching the way her breasts moved, but something had drawn his attention to her hips, the way they swayed as she walked, and as she got closer, he found his eyes being drawn to her crotch, even as his nose was filled with her scent... It was obvious she'd buried some toy between her legs; the way she moved, the way she smelled just screamed "Vixen in heat," and in some portion of his hind-brain he knew he had to have her, no matter what it cost him. Without a word, he lifted the swinging portion of his counter and croaked; "Won't you come in?"

Tanj's eyes flicked up, startled as she suddenly realized there was a reflection in the transparent aluminum of the observation port. A fox was standing behind her. He was wearing some sort of cloak of a nondescript dark gray color, the hood thrown back, whatever garments he might have had on underneath concealed. Tanj found her gaze flicking back to his eyes; they seemed to be both captivating, and ... haunted. After a moment, she forced herself to break her gaze, to turn towards him; "I'm..." The fox interrupted; "I know who you are. And I know why you are here. There is nothing that you need to know about me, save that the information I pass on to you is reliable. And only the evidence of that material itself will prove that." His voice was deep, and as captivating as his eyes... Tanj swallowed and nodded, but before she could speak he continued; "In three weeks time, a freighter will leave Elysium. It will appear to be just another tramp freighter, but is actually the disguised personal vessel of Lord Isloth. He and his retinue will be traveling to the Imperial capital to solicit aid for their fight against the increasing rebel problem, and to sign joint ventures that would bring in capital that would aid the Elysium government and the major corporations in their fight. The name of the freighter is "Stra'doc"." Tanj nodded; "Stra'doc. Yes, that sounds like valuable information; we'll keep an eye out for that vessel." Cocking her head to one side, Tanj looked at the fox; "You've been most valuable to us, of late, and your information has been quite good. Obviously we are interested in... furthering your usefulness to us. What additional resources might we be able to supply you, to allow you to be of additional service to us?" The fox gave a ghost of a smile; "There is nothing that you could provide me that would help. I do all that I am able to do, and for my own reasons. Use my information wisely, and you shall hear from me again." With that the fox turned, and started to walk silently away. Tanj blinked and then called out; "Wait, before you go, what shall I call you? We don't even know your name..." The fox stopped and looked back over his shoulder. Again, the sad, wistful smile appeared on his face. "If you must call me something, call me "Entity." That should be more than sufficiently misleading, to any who might chance across that name. Oh, by the way, take care in heading back; there may be Apache about..." Turning again, he resumed walking off down the corridor, his strange gray cloak blending in with the background, seeming to make him vanish only a few meters down the corridor. And as he moved, he made not a sound. Tanj turned and stared out the observation port for a while, until she was sure he was gone, until she was sure no one seeing her would connect her with that mysterious figure.

Rick was in bad shape. All his determination, all his resolve, all seemed to have evaporated as her scent filled the air. One kiss from her, one caress, one brush of her body against his and he was as hard as he'd ever been in his life, his pants bulging embarrassingly. Languidly, she unbuttoned his shirt, softly kissing her way down his chest. He was frozen; he couldn't move, couldn't breathe, and all the while the drumbeat of his heart filled his ears. And then she was undoing his pants, freeing his rampant cock, fondling it, stroking it, making little cooing sounds. He almost lost it the instant her tongue touched the head of his cock, but somehow he managed to control himself. Fondling her ears, he moaned; "Oh, BABY! OH!, YESSSSSSS!"

Zassa smiled to herself; "Those pheromones really seem to do the trick; he's about to explode and I only just got here. I wonder if I even CAN cool him down some?" Tilting her head back, looking up at him, Zassa inquired sweetly; "By the way, did the Chutney ever come in?"

Rick couldn't believe this; how could she stop at a time like THIS? Nodding vigorously he moaned; "Oh, ye... Yeah... got you th...three jars..." Zassa purrrred and bent forward to take the head of his cock in her mouth once again, her tongue lashing out to stroke the under side of his shaft. She had him right where she wanted him.

Rick gasped, his body bucking, his hips thrusting his spurting cock at her mouth, as he exploded in what had to have been the most powerful orgasm of his life. And that devilishly sexy vixen caught every drop, making a great show of catching each spurt on her tongue, and acting like it was the finest caviar. Finally he calmed down, his chest heaving as he panted, his heart still pounding in his chest. "Gave up more than I'd intended" he thought to himself; "But it was a reasonable trade for what I got, I guess..." Then his eyes went wide as the vixen stood, one paw moving to the silver zipper at her throat. As the zipper slowly moved downward, he felt his eyes get wider, and his cock slowly harden again, and he knew he was in serious trouble.

Tanj walked slowly through the station, heading back to the ship. Her encounter with Entity had disturbed her for some reason. She just didn't know what to make of him. "I wonder if Mark might provide any insights" she thought to herself as she passed the bar. Stopping, pausing, she smiled and then resumed her walk towards the ship; "I'll talk to him on the trip back; no need to bother him now; besides, I want to wear something a little less... severe when I go to the bar." Lost in her thoughts, wondering what in the heck an "Apache" was, the cheetah slowly padded towards the docking ring.

Rick thought that the vixen removing her outfit looked like someone shedding their skin. And when she pushed the outfit down over her hips, and he watched that phallic plug slide glistening from her sex, he thought his eyes would pop from his head like some cartoon character. And then she was nude, and pressing herself against him, her crotch drenched from her own juices. There was nothing he could do but to fall back, to the floor, pulling her down on top of him. Zassa giggled, and squirmed as enticingly as she knew how, making sure her breasts stroked across his chest, her nipples hard points ruffling his fur; sitting up, she reached between her thighs to capture his once-again hard cock, to hold it perpendicular to his body. Rising slightly she dragged its head back and forth through her dripping slit, and grinning down at him, she purrred; "Any of that Catnip ever show up?"

Wanda had pulled on her dress, and was scowling at herself in the mirror; when the light hit it just right, it became more than translucent; it became damn near invisible... and that thrice damned chastity belt Tanj had locked her into was painfully apparent! Sitting down heavily on her bed, she wondered how she could get Tanj to let her out of it for the evening?

Rick howled, heedless of what those outside his stall might hear, or see; he didn't care; the vixen rode his cock with such ... skill, such wild abandon, such ENTHUSIASM that he was sure she would turn him inside out! Every time he was close to cumming, she'd slow down; every time he'd caught his breath, her vaginal muscles would start rippling, squeezing, milking him again and he'd skyrocket to the very brink... and then she'd stop... He wanted to cum, desperately needed to cum... Zassa looked at his face, and grinned; bending way over, until her breasts were pressed hard against his chest, she purrred into his ear; "Find me a copy of that new Holo romance, the one with that Leonardo guy in it, and I'll bring you off like you've never gotten off before!" Rick groaned and shook his head; the Sabatini sisters were going to be really pissed, but he couldn't help himself. "It's YOURS" he moaned, and Zassa straightened, to do incredible things with her vaginal muscles. Rick howled like a wolf and bucked his hips up into her, as his cock exploded, his orgasm even more powerful than before!

Zassa grinned and checked his pulse. He was still alive, but that last one had certainly taken him somewhere else. After a minute, the fox groaned, and shook his head, his eyes opening. As he focused on Zassa, the vixen still astride his hips, he mumbled; "Thought I'd died and gone to heaven." Zassa just grinned and humped him a few times, eliciting howls from the now incredibly sensitive fox. "If you can find me that dark chocolate, I'll be a good girl and let you be..." Grinning wider she humped him again; "Otherwise, Dear, its likely to be a long night." Rick howled; "Half a pound you pirate! Now quit, PLEASE, before I'm ruined!"

Zassa was squishing as she walked back towards the ship. The inside of the latex suit was now awash with her juices, there being no place to clean up in the stall. Still, the phallic plug buried in her pussy felt good as she walked, and the bag of booty over her shoulder was an added delight, even if it was deuced heavy. It'd make a lot of folks back home happy too. Spotting the bazaar down a side corridor, the vixen made a small side trip, drawing stares from everyone as she walked past. Finding the vendor who had sold her the pheromones she gave him her best grin. The vendor for his part cringed at the sight, and looked as if he might bolt. "Hmph; must be showing too much teeth" the vixen thought to herself; "Just wanted to stop by and tell you that the stuff you sold me is GREAT; you wouldn't believe how well it worked!" Grinning at the badger, Zassa turned and sashayed off through the Bazaar.

The badger looked at his vials and shook his head; "Bottled this stuff right from the tap myself; what in the WORLD is she talkin' about?" Looking up at the departing vixen, the badger scratched his head; "Hell, she's so sexy as it is, she doesn't NEED any extra 'pheromones'!"

Tanj did a double-take as Zassa came in through the airlock. Wanda squealed with delight as she took Zassa's carryall, to look inside the surprisingly heavy bag. Looking up at the vixen, Wanda grinned; "You will be a heroine of monumental proportions when we get home, Zassa! You even found Ben his Brie, and you got the Chutney!" The vixen just grinned depreciatingly and making little liquid sounds among the squeaks of her latex outfit, she padded towards the ship's head. Tanj just shook her head and resumed her trek towards the flight deck, wondering what fallout might come from THAT little escapade... and then she grinned to herself, thinking maybe next time she'd go with Zassa; it looked like the vixen had had a marvelous time...

It was late that night when they all finally made it to the bar. Tanj was wearing her new dress, as was Wanda, still grumbling about the chastity belt that Tanj had refused to let her out of. Hinoki was in another one of his rock concert tee-shirts (this one only a few years out of date, but according to him, still a 'classic'), and a pair of skintight black shorts. Zassa was in a short, flouncy halter dress in blinding white that she'd bought. They moved through the door, into the crowded, noisy bar, and looked around, blinking, searching for Mark.

Mark looked up and smiled; Tanj and the rest of the crew had just entered the bar, and were standing just inside the door, waiting for their eyes to adjust to the gloom, their ears to the noise (for that certainly couldn't be called "music"). Turning to Mala he smiled; "They're here; just like we discussed, OK?" The Hyena smiled, and nodded.

Tanj spotted the Hyena first through the crowds. Stepping a little to one side, to see past a Rhino that was trying to dance with a wolf fem, she caught the flash of white that was Mark's fur. Gesturing to the others, she headed out across the bar for their table, having to take a small detour to evade the waltzing couple. Settling into the chair opposite the Hyena, Tanj's gaze flicked to Mark, looking at him inscrutably for a moment and then her gaze turned back to the Hyena. "I'm Captain Sou An Ky of the ... free trader "Lost Cause." I understand Mark's been talking to you about us." The Hyena nodded solemnly; "I'm Mala Z'pata, and yes, he's told me a few interesting things about you...and your organization." She mock-scowled at the mouse, who for his part just smiled back brightly with his best innocent expression. "Wouldn't go into any juicy details, though, and the internal walls on this station are so flimsy I couldn't find a place to properly 'question' him without being heard..." Hinoki took a look at the expression on Tanj's face and grabbed Zassa; "Come on, lets go get everyone a drink..." As they moved out onto the dance floor, headed for the bar, they heard Tanj say; "You realize of course that Mark has ignored quite a number of protocols in telling you anything about us..."

Hinoki ordered a round of drinks for the table, guessing at what the Hyena would want, while Zassa looked around the bar. In some ways, it looked rougher than the Brethren's base, and in some ways it looked better. There were a number of roughly dressed toughs, loud and boisterous, carrying edged, projectile and energy weapons, but so far they were keeping to themselves. There was the usual dockside crowd of cargo handlers, maintenance techs, and such, some obviously here directly from a hard day's work, some still carrying their tools. There were ship's crews, tight knit little knots of furrs at this table or that, most looking around as if on the defensive. And then there were what she took to be station personnel, some of them half way decently dressed. Then, with a grin, she spotted the Coyote she'd been talking to the other night...

Tanj sat back in her chair and growled softly; "I suppose your... experience with the Imperial Marines makes for a decent enough fit for our outfit, but at the same time I'd worry about... Conflicting loyalties, if you follow my drift. There's also the problem of getting along with everyone in a tight-knit outfit; remember, the organization is made up of less-than-diplomatic folks; if someone takes offense, they're most likely to settle problems with a knife, or a blaster, or with some I know, just fangs and claws. Excessive losses in that regard hurts ... operational efficiency." Mala cocked her head at the cheetah; "In English, please." Tanj sighed; "You get into too many fights with the crew, you'll either wind up dead, or they will; either way we may not have enough folks for what we need to do." Mala snorted; "If you insist, I'm sure I can settle for just breaking a few bones from time to time..." Tanj sighed again and shot a dark look at Mark, who seemed to have a hard time maintaining his innocent look.

Hinoki grinned as he set down the tray of drinks; turning to Wanda, he whispered; "How's it going?" Wanda just winced, grabbed her drink, chugged half of it, and grabbed Hinoki to drag him out on the dance floor.

Zassa danced by herself, knowing that she'd attracted the eyes of the Coyote. As she moved lithely, she winked at him, and then danced off teasingly.

Tanj sighed and leaned back again, reaching for her drink. At least she assumed it was her drink. "I guess we'll just have to see what the boss says. At this point, I suspect that's the best alternative." Mark smiled; "That's what I hoped for. I'm not worried about the usual checks and stuff...after all, look at who ELSE passed those." He waved a hand to indicate the crew members scattered throughout the bar, including himself. Mala just nodded, her smile wide enough to show fangs, the overall effect making her look sinister and threatening. Tanj looked from Mark to Mala and back, and then just looked at the ceiling, to mutter; "How do I get myself into these situations?"

Zassa smiled as the Coyote hugged her; as she'd intended, he'd approached her after her dance. Now, as she rubbed against him, she could feel his arousal through his pants. As she tilted her head to kiss him, she caught Tanj watching her from the corner of her eye; she just smiled and shrugged and gave her a wink, and then turned to kiss the Coyote.

Tanj sighed as she watched Zassa tease her beau. "Absolutely insatiable" she grinned to herself. Turning, she watched Wanda and Hinoki for a moment, thinking that they were defining the term "Dirty Dancing"... Hinoki had definitely taught the young wolverine some moves. Draining the last of her drink from her glass, she rose and headed for the bar and a refill, thinking she ought to leave Mark and the Hyena alone for a bit, after she'd lit into them both. "Off to a great start there" she grumbled to herself. She was almost to the bar when someone grabbed her around the waist, lifting her from the floor. She was just about to claw whomever had grabbed her when the Stallion from the other night announced loudly; "Whell, Looky here what Ah's found!"

Hinoki had just sat Wanda down, and had reached for his own drink when he saw Tanj snatched up. For an instant, he thought she was in trouble, but then he realized she was just being assaulted by an over-enthusiastic and perhaps something less than suave suitor. The stallion had come in with a number of friends, all seemingly as boisterous and harmless as himself, and Hinoki found himself looking at one of them, a middle aged lioness was staring back at him, with that predatory look that lionesses can do so well. Before he could seek the shelter of his seat, she'd strode over to him, one paw reaching out to touch his collar; "Wal, looky here; ain't you a purty one! Who's your master, boy?" Hinoki grinned weakly and jestured to Tanj, who still hadn't quite escaped the over-enthusiastic clutches of the stallion; "Uh, she is..." The lioness followed his gesture and grinned, her fangs glinting whitely in the bar's dark interior. "Yo! Clem! Put her down fo' a minute!" Clem grinned and turned, still not letting Tanj loose, but bringing her around so she could see the lioness and Hinoki. Grinning wider, the lioness gestured to Hinoki; "Y'all mind iff'n ah borrowed your boy for a bit; he's kinda struck mah fancy." Tanj took in the cast of Hinoki's ears, and his tail, trying to read his opinion, and then made an off-handed gesture, as if to say "if you wish"... or was it just a reflex jerk as Clem once again swept her off her feet, to carry her towards a booth. The lioness nodded; "Much obliged, Ma'am!" And grabbing Hinoki's collar she turned, to drag him off towards one of the curtained booths in the back of the bar.

The panther watched the group from the Lost Cause carefully. The vixen was acting according to the preliminary psychological profile he had seen, as was the male cheetah, even if a bit unwillingly. The mouse, as ever, was an enigma, and the things he'd heard about the Hyena, although not listed as a member of the crew, were... well, enough to make HIM shudder in reflex when he saw her scooping the mouse into her lap. The Captain, now perhaps a bit less reluctantly in the lap of the stallion, was also following the profile, and the panther grinned to himself; if the profile was correct, it wouldn't take much for the stallion to wear down her resistance. And the Wolverine girl... she looked so frustrated, sitting there, by the mouse and the Hyena. Taking a quick look at the others, he rose, figuring this was as good a chance as any. Walking over to her slowly, he bowed to her, and asked; "Miss, may I have this dance?"

Wanda smiled up at the panther. Turning to shoot an inquiring glance at Mark, and receiving the tiniest nod in return, she rose, to give him her paw, to let him lead her out onto the dance floor.

Tanj sighed and smiled; the Stallion certainly was persistent, and in his own clumsy way, charming enough. Looking about the bar, she saw the curtain bulge in the booth where the lioness had dragged Hinoki off to; then the cheetah's tail snaked out from under its edge; from the bulge and the position of his tail, Tanj guessed he was on his knees, between